


The Hero's Guide to Heroism

by tyrannosaurus_rose



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Anal, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Fluff, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, M/M, Male/Male, Multi, Oral Sex, Romance, Slash, Tit Torture, gen - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-04
Updated: 2016-04-08
Packaged: 2018-01-21 22:51:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 25,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1566926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tyrannosaurus_rose/pseuds/tyrannosaurus_rose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of glimpses into the life of Zack Fair as he lives, learns, and grows.  Character driven, no overarching plot.  Rating bumped for Chapter 10.  Multiple POV, Focus Pairing: Zack/Sephiroth, also featuring Zack/Genesis, others to come.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Success of Great Magnitude

A Success of Great Magnitude

Word Count: 299

For once in his life, Zack Fair stood absolutely still, gazing in awe at the sight before him. His heart raced, his palms were beginning to sweat, and although he noticed his lips had parted and he stood like a slack-jawed buffoon, he could do nothing but continue to stare. Slowly, ever so slowly, his expression changed from one of awe to one of hope and longing, and he took a small step forward. 

For its part, the chocobo gazed solemnly back. Zack’s approach, slow as it was, did not startle the bird one bit. Slowly, ever so slowly, Zack reached a hand across the distance, fingers extended, breath baited.  Inches away from the beak of the enormous bird, his hand stopped. Still the chocobo stared, as if with its eyes it could measure the content of Zack’s character.

Then, as if deciding the spiky-haired boy had passed some unspoken test, the chocobo gently lowered its beak to butt against the tips of the SOLDIER’s fingers. In a rush of air, Zack let out a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding.  After a moment of what seemed to be disbelieving relief, Zack let out a whoop of pure joy and vaulted onto the unsaddled beast’s back.

The chocobo pranced a bit, getting used to the weight, and flapped its wings a few times before taking off to run laps around the paddock, its rider making happy sounds of encouragement along the way.  “Seph, you are the ABSOLUTE BEST, how did you KNOW?!” he yelled delightedly as they dashed by in a blur of black spikes and yellow feathers. 

From his place leaning against the paddock fence, Sephiroth felt a smile tug at his lips. After all, what did a success of this magnitude deserve, if not celebration?  


	2. A Crazy Idea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angeal coaches Sephiroth in the art of entertaining. Zack/Sephiroth established relationship.

A Crazy Idea  
Word Count: 947

From the moment he stepped foot in the General’s office, Angeal knew something was wrong. The office was a standard of cleanliness and order: perfectly normal. Sephiroth’s personal assistant sat at her desk in the outer office, a look of confused concentration on her face. Well within her standard behavior spectrum. Sephiroth was sitting unmoving at his desk, staring at paperwork – not particularly unusual. 

The file he was looking at was upside down. 

Angeal started counting seconds silently as he waited for Sephiroth to notice. When three minutes passed and the General had hardly blinked, Angeal decided to intervene. 

“Sephiroth,” he said as he went a step farther into the office. No change. “Sephiroth, what’s wrong?” Angeal tried again. 

For a moment, there was no response. Then, Sephiroth’s brow scrunched slightly and he looked up at the older First. “What do you do when you quarrel with Fair?” 

Angeal stared at the General, stumped. Quarrel with Zack? Zack never argued with anyone, unless it was something trivial, like the comparative merits of butts over boobs. The boy got along with everyone, all the time. Even the women he flirted with so shamelessly always forgave him almost immediately. It was impossible not to. 

Angeal paused and tried to reorient his thinking. If Sephiroth had asked in response to his opening query, it meant he and Zack were fighting. If Zack and Sephiroth were fighting, and it was enough to have the General staring unblinking at upside-down reports for three solid minutes or more, it was bad. 

“If he says something stupid, I usually just deck him,” Angeal finally responded. “He’s good at associating cause and effect.” It worked with rewards, too, and was one (among many) of the ways Zack had earned his nickname. 

“In this case, I believe I may be the one in need of a… ‘decking,’ as you put it,” Sephiroth said slowly. 

Angeal narrowed his eyes. If Sephiroth had done something to Zack that was bad enough to have him this out of sorts, it was bad. (A small voice in the back of Angeal’s head reminded him that if Zack had been hospitalized, Angeal would have been notified. It didn’t help much.) “What did you do?” he asked carefully, trying to sound only inquisitive and not judgmental. Zack was his student, but Sephiroth was his friend. 

“Angeal, have you ever…” Sephiroth’s voice trailed off, but Angeal waited patiently, knowing the younger SOLDIER was only searching for the best phrasing. “Have you ever had to systematically and consistently refuse Fair something he indicated he wanted?” 

What. If this was about sex, Angeal didn’t want to know. Although they weren’t related, Angeal thought of Zack as family, and when so few things could be kept secret at ShinRa, Angeal was adamant that his puppy’s personal life stay personal. 

Delicately, Angeal tried to do some recon. “Something he told you explicitly he wanted, you mean?”

Sephiroth looked pained. “Not… exactly. But for example, have you ever had to tell him his… physical affection… was being exhibited in levels inappropriate for a professional setting?” 

Oh. Actually, Angeal had been wondering when this would become a problem. Everyone knew Zack and Sephiroth cared deeply for one another, just as everyone knew they were good for each other and everyone could see the evidence of mutual growth. 

It was also well-known that while Zack was affectionate enough that his warmth could heat a city block, Sephiroth struggled with casual physical intimacy, and tended to fall back on regulation when unsure how to proceed in interpersonal relationships. When they had first started dating, Angeal had been surprised at how well Zack took Sephiroth’s physical standoffishness, and assumed it was made up for in private to an extent that well enough compensated. Maybe not. 

“Of course. Zack has always been extraordinarily affectionate. The first time I took him to see Lazard, I was terrified he would climb into the man’s lap. But he’s been much better behaved recently.” This was the extent of Angeal’s ability to not-so-subtly invite the General to come out with what was bothering him. 

Sephiroth quirked a smile at the reference to Zack’s obedience school days. “He behaves well enough. But he doesn’t want to. He doesn’t want to have to, but I can’t… I can’t change everything just for him.” 

“Of course you can’t. Protocol exists for a reason, and Zack knows that. Just as I’m sure he knows you have things you struggle with, and things you need from your relationship with him. Boundaries, you might say. And I’m sure he would respect them and help you push past them at your own pace as long as you make it clear what they are.” 

Sephiroth frowned. “We have talked about it. He knows how I feel, and I know how he feels. And he says it’s fine, and he seems understanding, but—” 

“But he has needs, too.” Angeal suddenly felt very sympathetic towards his young friend. 

“I just don’t want to disappoint him, Angeal. I don’t – I can’t – I don’t want to have to give him up.” The, “but if it becomes clear he’s absolutely better off without me, I will, although it will be at great personal loss” was left unspoken but not unheard. 

Angeal frowned thoughtfully. When it came right down to it, Sephiroth was a possessive bastard, but maybe for the sake of keeping Zack he would allow the boy to spread his attentions. Not that Zack would likely agree to a polygamous relationship, but…

“What if…” Angeal started. Sephiroth, who had been morosely examining his desk after his latest confession, snapped to attention. “What if you got him a pet?”


	3. A Puppy for Puppy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sephiroth struggles with effectively implementing Angeal's advice.

A Puppy for Puppy  
Word Count: 335

“What if you got him a pet?” 

Angeal had dropped that bomb and then decided their conversation was over, apparently, because after that he proceeded to dump a stack of mission reports on Sephiroth’s desk for final review, comment briefly that the report in front of the General appeared to be upside-down, and then turned and left the office. 

Now alone in his office and unobserved, Sephiroth frowned and thought. What would happen if he got Fair a pet? The most obvious outcome was that the animal would quickly die, of course. Not that he doubted Zack’s skills as a caretaker – Fair, damn it, call him Fair at work – but as a SOLDIER, one’s schedule was not always responsive to what one wished it to be. That is to say, missions happened, and sometimes they went on for rather extended periods of time after starting quite suddenly. There wouldn’t always be time to find dog-sitter or a boarding facility before deployment, and animals that could be kept with minimal care and attention were less responsive to physical attention, like cuddling. 

An animal that did not like to cuddle would not help in this situation. 

But what did that leave? Dogs were the obvious answer, but as mentioned, they required constant, consistent care and attention. Cats were only slightly more self-sufficient. Ideally the creature would be something Zack could roughhouse with, so he could get rid of some of his excess energy. Sephiroth turned his mind briefly to monsters before considering that, while Zack – Fair – whatever – could almost certainly feel affection for anything, if his monster pet got loose in ShinRa a soldier would kill it without blinking, and wouldn’t THAT just be a great “welcome home” present. 

There had to be something. Angeal wouldn’t have suggested it if it was a dead-end. Resigned, Sephiroth pushed it to the back of his mind. Maybe the answer would come to him while he wasn’t thinking about it; in the meantime, he could be getting work done.


	4. Sometimes, a List Helps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angeal is an analytical thinker. Today, he's out to convince Genesis of his point. You can take it or leave it, but I can't imagine Genesis really managed to hold himself apart from Angeal's mentoring of Zack. Genesis and Angeal are best friends, after all. ;)

Sometimes, a List Helps  
Word Count: 991

Number one: he is obedient. (Once you get the intended timing across, anyway. Now, please.)

Number two: he is loyal. Sort of. 

Angeal stared at the second item on his list. That morning, he had gone to pick Cadet Fair up for training, and found the boy rolling around on the mats with Genesis. The redheaded 1st had the cadet pinned. Considering the relative difference in strength, ability, and experience between a cadet a year into the program and a SOLDIER 1st class, this fact was unsurprising, and also made the fact that Cadet Fair had the room to struggle the way he was doing obviously intentional on Genesis’ part. 

Watching his handpicked cadet writhe under his best friend, Angeal would not have needed three guesses to figure out why Genesis was allowing Zack that space. 

He had separated them, of course, and scolded Genesis. (Zack was Angeal’s handpicked cadet. If Genesis had wanted one, he should have made the proper arrangements. Of course, Angeal knew that Genesis didn’t really want one, and was only playing with Zack because Angeal had proved his interest by selecting him.) Genesis had borne it gracefully, and left the training room with a flirtatious wave and wink in Zack’s direction. Zack’s blush was so bright, Angeal would probably have been able to read by it on a dark night. 

Angeal frowned and returned to his list. 

Number three: he is comfortable interacting with people who significantly outrank him. This applies even in situations when others of his rank are easily observable and displaying more obvious signs of nervousness respect. 

Number four: he is honest and genuine in everything he does. 

Number five: when he does feel compelled to be dishonest, he is so obvious about it that the subterfuge is revealed almost immediately every time, saving the need for review of interactions based on false pretenses. 

Number six: he never makes you feel the need to second-guess yourself. 

Unless he thinks you’re being too stern, Angeal thought, and wondered if he shouldn’t start separating out a list of cons. But even though he might not ever tell Zack, Angeal also considered his sternness a character flaw. He knew many of the SOLDIER in his unit looked up to him as an almost paternal figure (although really, he was much too young), and many people had the image of the stern father in their heads, but Angeal wanted to learn to be more supportive. Zack was just childish enough to really need that support, and not just crave it. It forced Angeal to be careful, and to moderate his sternness with affection. 

Number seven: he is a never-ending source of affection. 

Once you earned it, anyway. Zack wasn’t a stuffed animal, and he didn’t know everybody (yet, said a nagging voice in Angeal’s head – and he knew, it was likely only a matter of time before Zack really did know everyone who worked in the massive ShinRa compound by name) but he certainly was able to get along with anyone at the drop of a hat, and with those people he did know, a sunny attitude was almost a given. Unless he was pouting, of course – but half the time, that was just to be cute anyway. 

Number eight: he is unendingly energetic. In fact, he might even reasonably be described as hyper by default. 

Number nine: he approaches all challenges with a positive, can-do attitude. (Although when thinking about the situation with Genesis this morning, it might be better if he wasn’t quite so quick to accept challenges in the first place.) 

Number ten: he learns quickly when provided with either positive or negative consequences, and rarely provokes negative consequences to begin with. 

Number eleven: he can sleep anywhere. 

Most people didn’t know it, but the ability to go to sleep at a moment’s notice, in any situation and any position, was an asset to anyone who lived with the grueling schedule of a SOLDIER. You didn’t always know when your next break would be, and sometimes the safest campsite was halfway up a tree. 

Number twelve: he can focus on anything if directed to enough times. 

That sort of sounded like he had ADD, but when Zack focused, he made things happen. If getting to focus in the first place was the greatest challenge he ever faced, the cadet would go very, very far. 

Number thirteen: he’s always happy to see me, which makes me always happy and excited to see him. 

Being a general was stressful work; anything that could ease that was worth it. 

Number fourteen: he knows the value of a good cuddle, and doesn’t expect casual physical affection to automatically turn into sex. 

Well, so far, anyway. Zack might still be a little young to be thinking about those sorts of things, but regardless, Angeal appreciated the cadet’s ability to chill out and snuggle up. Serotonin is a thing, yo, and human contact makes for great stress relief. 

Number fifteen: he’s proud of himself when he does well, but also humble enough to constantly try to do better. 

Angeal regarded the list with a smile. He was sure Zack had many other amiable and endearing qualities that made him well and thoroughly qualified as a candidate for special attention from a distinguished 1st like himself – qualities that had nothing to do with sex appeal. In the morning, he would hand the list over to Genesis, and that would be the end of cradle robber remarks. 

On second thought, maybe he should take item number fourteen off the list. 

————

Genesis reviewed the list Angeal had handed him, titled “Reasons to Consider Zack Fair for Acceleration through the Cadet Program (in no particular order)” and felt his eyebrows slowly inching up his forehead. When he got to the end of the list, he turned to his best friend, laughing, and asked, “Angeal, is Zack your cadet or your dog?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is my personal head canon that the "puppy" nickname was affectionately appropriated by Angeal after Genesis made some scathing comment.


	5. Sharing is Caring

Sharing is Caring  
Word Count: 998

When he first heard Angeal was taking on a student from among the cadets, Genesis pouted. It may not have been obvious to the casual observer, but he made sure Angeal could tell he was upset in subtle ways: he shifted the emphasis of LOVELESS quotes to those about abandoned lovers and comrades, and found opportunities to annoyingly cling in ways that were only barely professional, like showing up for meetings he wasn’t invited to (but nevertheless had the clearance for, of course). 

It may have gone on like that indefinitely if Angeal hadn’t finally snapped, but even then it wasn’t exactly in the way Genesis had been hoping he would. “Why don’t you try meeting him before you judge him unfit for my attention?” Angeal growled one afternoon. 

Well. If his best friend wouldn’t give up a passing interest some stupid cadet for him, Genesis would just have to take matters into his own hands. 

When Genesis found his way to the cadet training room that Thursday morning, he had expected to find Fair a miniature version of Angeal: not quite as buff yet, maybe, but generally built along the lines of a powerful physical fighter, or built in the teenage approximation that indicated he would grow into one. Not so. 

The intensive training of the cadet program was obviously taking its toll, and the boy was showing some impressive musculature. But he was built on wiry, not sturdy, lines. And while he and Angeal did have a (striking) physical resemblance in terms of coloring, it was there that comparison ended. 

Cadet Zack Fair was beautiful. 

Until that moment, Genesis’ list of beautiful people had included himself, Sephiroth, Rufus, and that girl in that hotel he stayed in with Angeal on their first trip to Midgar from Banora. (What? Angeal might be his best friend, and the man was attractive, but he wasn’t beautiful. Although apparently, if the people he chose to spend his time with were any indication, he did have excellent taste.) 

A few of the cadets had noticed Genesis and were trying to subtly stare at him in awe (trying being the operative word – it was not the first time Genesis considered that Turk stealth training might serve the SOLDIER program well). Genesis pretended to ignore them, although of course he reveled in their attention. They should look at him like that. He was a glorious First, after all, was he not? 

Fair had not noticed him, or if he did, he was doing much better at feigning disinterest. Was this why Angeal had chosen him? He was friends with Genesis, so perhaps he liked people who played coy. After a moment, though, Fair seemed to realize that his friends’ attention was not on their morning workout, and turned to find the source of the distraction. His eyes landed on Genesis and he considered the First for a moment with a look of mild confusion, as if wondering what Genesis could want with him. Then he turned back to his routine as if nothing was out of the ordinary at all. 

For his part, Genesis seethed. How dare this cadet dismiss him? 

It didn’t matter. He would force the cadet to engage if he had to, in a way Fair wouldn’t soon forget. Striding across the room to the brunette, Genesis called out, “Cadet Fair?”

Zack looked up and then snapped to attention. “Sir!” 

Was it just Genesis or did the word sound mocking on those perfect Cupid’s bow lips? “You are the cadet receiving additional training and attention from SOLDIER First Class Angeal?” Genesis made sure his voice sounded demanding, although he rather hated the drill sergeant routine. 

“Sir, yes, sir!” Definitely mocking. Did the boy think Angeal’s protection would serve him even here? 

“I would like to see the effects of Angeal’s guidance. Are you prepared to demonstrate, Cadet?” 

“Uh…” Ha. So Fair wasn’t always perfectly prepared with a subtle, witty counterattack. Genesis could tell he had won this. 

Trying and mostly succeeding to stifle a smirk, Genesis quirked an eyebrow and pivoted to gesture to the open training mat behind them. “Let’s go.” 

Now Cadet Fair grinned. Excitedly, he strode past Genesis onto the mat before turning back to bow slightly, not taking his eyes off his new opponent. Good form, Genesis silently complimented. Not good enough. 

Genesis let Fair attack, since he was the one who was supposed to be showing off his skills, and noted with indifference that the boy did seem to have benefitted from Angeal’s attentions. Unfortunately for Zack, Genesis had been training with Angeal for years, and knew all the tricks in his arsenal. It was mere moments before Genesis was able to tackle Fair to the ground and hold him there. 

Zack struggled, of course, and Genesis was again struck by the youngster’s beauty. The cadet’s age wasn’t a big deterrent – Genesis was a connoisseur of loveliness, and couldn’t care less about something as insignificant as a birthdate – but there were rules about this sort of thing. Or rather, rules against it. 

Still, Genesis shifted his weight until he was very subtly planking just above the boy so that he could enjoy the boy’s struggling a little more. Honestly, in their current position, it was more surprising it hadn’t happened sooner, but when finally their eyes met, Genesis felt a jolt pass through him for just a fraction of a second. 

He wondered later if that fascinating jolt would have lasted longer if Angeal hadn’t chosen just that moment to grab him and pull him off the cadet. Genesis endured Angeal’s speech (about honor, discipline, and respect) until his friend gave in, glaring. Sauntering out of the gym, Genesis still couldn’t shake his interest in that strange jolt; curious, he turned one last time to find Cadet Fair staring after him. Genesis did the only reasonable thing in that situation: he winked, twitching his fingers in a coy little wave. 

Zack’s blush was worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew, barely made the word limit with this one. For those of you who are confused, these chapters are not always going up in chronological order and are definitely not cohesive. Over time, you will see themes emerge among installments that “go” together, but generally speaking, this fic is just a way for me to practice being a fic writer. I have a couple of self-identified areas for improvement, but I do always welcome your comments and insights. 
> 
> As ever, thank you for reading!


	6. Verbal Sparring

Verbal Sparring  
Word Count: 935

Zack Fair could not stop bouncing. Even if Sephiroth, the General, Leader of SOLDIER, and boyfriend extraordinaire had ordered him to “cease your incessant fidgeting this instant,” Zack wouldn’t have been able to. Not after today. 

Luckily for Zack, Sephiroth, walking next to him, did not want him to stop bouncing. Sephiroth found the bouncing, and the enormous smile plastered on Zack’s face, and his excited ramblings about all of the fun Sephiroth had just watched him have, quite cute. In fact, it was almost overwhelmingly cute. 

“– and when he stepped on me and then sat down, I thought I might die, but I just wiggled a little and he lifted his foot off and moved it and settled back down and I was just surrounded by the softest feathers ever and have you ever cuddled with a chocobo? They’re so cute and soft and warm and then he leaned down and nuzzled my cheek with his beak and –” 

If Zack behaved this way every time Sephiroth bought and presented him with a chocobo, the Shinra building would very soon find itself overrun with the birds. This time he had thought to take them out to the plains where chocobo ranches could more realistically be managed, but they couldn’t schlep out here every day. Shinra was just going to have to adjust. 

“– know when we can come back?” 

Sephiroth only realized Zack had asked him a question when he noticed the brunette was no longer chattering, and tried to recall what the question was. 

“We can come back whenever you want, Zack, as long as you aren’t on duty.” 

This was, apparently, the right thing to say, as it caused Zack to launch into another slew of excited rambling and gesticulating. Sephiroth narrowly avoided getting punched in the eye as Zack waved his arms about, but more interesting was the way the motion caused sheded feathers that had attached themselves to Zack (well, he had basically been rolling in them) to detach and float away. In the evening sunlight, they looked almost like a shroud of golden rain. 

For a moment, Sephiroth stopped to watch. Zack continued on, not noticing the change. “Zack,” Sephiroth called, just a few paces behind, cutting the brunette off mid-ramble. 

“Huh?” 

A smile tugged at the General’s lips. “You have feathers in your hair,” he said, stepping up to his boyfriend and beginning to pick them out, delicately letting them fall. 

“Oh,” Zack whispered, blushing. He tucked his chin in to give Sephiroth better access to his hair, leaning against the taller man’s chest. After a few minutes, Sephiroth was just running his fingers playfully through Zack’s hair, having efficiently dispatched the downy feathers. 

Zack looked up and found Sephiroth smiling gently down at him. Overcome by the love and affection and happiness he saw in those vivid green eyes, he rushed to fill the silence. “I really did have the most amazing time today, Seph, and if we can’t come back for a while I totally understand. This is already more than anyone has ever done for me. I mean, a real chocobo – this can’t have been easy. Thank you so much,” he finished with sincerity. 

“I’m happy that you are happy. It is a joy to watch you play so freely,” Sephiroth said quietly. “I know you’ve been working hard lately.” 

Zack grinned up at him. “Well I can’t be a Second forever!” he said cheekily. “Hard work equals promotion.” 

“You just made Second a few months ago, Zack,” Sephiroth replied, laughing. “How quickly do you intend to ascend the ranks?” 

“Welll,” Zack said, drawing out the word. “The faster I make First, the faster I gain keycard access to your office, right?” Zack grinned. There were a number of floors and amenities accessible only to First Class SOLDIER, and Angeal had started rationing the number of times he would let Zack get away with “borrowing” his keycard in a week. 

“What a pity that you’ll be so much busier now, with a pet to look after,” Sephiroth commented thoughtfully. “An all access-pass to the First Class floors? Sounds like it might have been fun.” He meant it teasingly, but his voice came out soft and sincere, and he worried briefly it might go over Zack’s head. 

Instead, Zack stared at him for a moment in stunned disbelief. “You –!” he sputtered. 

Sephiroth just chuckled mirthfully, glad the joke had gone over well. “You’ll catch up someday, Zack,” he affirmed. “There’s no rush. And in the meantime, you have a new friend to play with.” 

“Yeah, well,” he said grumpily, “I’ll probably be here a lot, on all those days I don’t want to deal with all the shit you give me just for existing.” He glared, petulantly, and Sephiroth responded with a glare of his own, trying for a look of haughtiness and contempt. He couldn’t hold onto it, though: Zack’s pout was too adorable, and his effort at glaring made him look about as angry as a wet kitten. Relaxing his face into a smile, he pulled his boyfriend into his arms, and they kissed for a moment, gently, enjoying each other’s company and riding the wave of mutual happiness and contentment. 

“What will you name him?” Sephiroth asked against Zack’s lips. “Your new pet?”  
“He’s been such a friend to me lately,” Zack replied, sounding thoughtful. “I think I’ll call him Chocobro.” Zack pulled away from Sephiroth’s tensed form, meeting his horrified gaze with dancing eyes. When it came to these verbal sparring matches, Sephiroth always started them – but Zack always won.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have the odd feeling that I write more quickly and easily, and am more creative, in the middle of the night, but also that the quality of my writing suffers for it. As this work is un-beta’d, PLEASE let me know if you notice any typos or areas of bad flow or jerky transitions. 
> 
> Even if you don’t see anything like that, feel free to tell me that, too. ;) I welcome commentary!


	7. Right Foot Forward

**Right Foot Forward**  
Word Count: 4033

_“SOLDIER First Class Angeal Hewley, report to Director Lazard’s office immediately,”_ the PA system crackled. Angeal, about to dig into lunch in the cafeteria, frowned, and Genesis and Sephiroth looked at him curiously. 

“Is your PHS broken?” Sephiroth wondered. 

“Not to my knowledge,” Angeal grumped. “It was working fine this morning.” Irate, he pulled it out and checked. There were several new messages from throughout the day, but none from Lazard or his office. “It seems to be ok,” he reported, confused. 

The PA system was never used to summon individuals. SOLDIER missions were private, as were Turk missions, Infantry missions, and the business of everyone else that worked at Shinra, whether their position be administrative, scientific, military, or covert. The showroom gift shop downstairs had its own PA rig so that people could be called to the front, but that was different. 

“Maybe the problem is in the Directors office?” Genesis suggested. “Although if Lazard needed you that badly, he should have just called.” 

Angeal shrugged. “I guess I’ll find out,” he said simply, collecting his tray and trying not to look too annoyed. 

“ _The wandering soul knows no rest!_ ” Genesis groaned dramatically, throwing his fork down on his plate. 

Sephiroth rearranged his features in attempt to express his disappointment. “We were so close,” he murmured. 

Angeal frowned. Things had been so hectic in Wutai that this was the first time in months the three of them had all been able to find even a half-hour of free time to sit together. They had all been looking forward to reconnecting, and now Angeal was suddenly being called away. “Maybe things will go quickly,” he said hopefully. “And if not, I’ll see you both tonight. We’re still on, right?” 

Sephiroth nodded solemnly while Genesis pouted. “Yeah,” the redhead grumped, “If you’re still in Midgar, we’re still on.” 

With that bleak reassurance, Angeal left their table to head up to Lazard’s headquarters. Lazard’s secretary greeted him with a smile and waved him right through, and Angeal took a deep breath before heading into the main office. Lazard was in his chair, spun around and not facing his door, so Angeal stood to attention and saluted a sharp “Sir!” to make his presence known. 

He was not up for corporate waiting games today. 

Luckily the Director didn’t seem to be in the mood to play any, because the blonde turned in his chair and greeted Angeal with a quick upward quirk of his lips – not quite a smile, but perhaps an attempt at cordiality – and gestured for him to take a seat. Angeal sat very tentatively indeed. 

“I apologize about the summons,” Lazard said briskly, “but I wasn’t sure where you were and I wanted you to come by as quickly as possible. My secretary was supposed to contact you about this yesterday, but we’ve been a bit behind on a number of things lately,” he said by way of apology. “Anyway, his schedule is tight, so I needed you to work with it.”

“I’m sorry, sir – his?” Angeal asked. Was he going to see the President, for some reason? 

“Ah… yes. General Hewley, I know this is sudden, and very unconventional, but I’ve selected you to mentor one of the cadets this year. If you’re ready, I can take you to see him now.” 

Angeal stared at his Director, floored. The mentoring program was new, and mostly developed for Seconds and older Thirds to help Third newbies adjust to life as super soldiers. For a general to mentor a cadet – Angeal had never heard of anything like it. (A little voice in the back of his head added, ‘why is it that I have to fit my schedule to that of a damn cadet?’ but Angeal pushed that aside.) “When you asked the three of us if we were interested in the program,” he started hesitantly. Angeal and the other two generals had been approached a few months after the program was started, and asked if they were interested in tutoring promising Seconds that might have what it took to become Generals. Since there were no exceptionally promising Seconds at that time, they had all dubiously agreed, knowing they could prevent the promotion of anyone who wasn’t skilled or well enough prepared for it. Privately, Angeal had gone to Lazard and indicated that he wouldn’t mind working with the Thirds, but at the same time had expressed reservations about the way the other SOLDIER might view that kind of higher-up interference. But to train a cadet… there was no guarantee this kid would even make it into SOLDIER in the first place! It was ridiculous! 

“I know this isn’t what you expected, Angeal,” Lazard said calmly. “This cadet’s teachers have all identified him as having exceptional potential, and preliminary tests indicate he will be receptive to the mako treatments. Unfortunately, what he has in aptitude he lacks in performance. He is in need of special attention if he is to successfully join the ranks of SOLDIER – and all indications are that if we can get him properly trained, he could become a great asset to our army. As he seems simply incapable of performing in the standard setting, we’re removing him from it,” Lazard explained, seeming somewhat ruffled. “Apparently there’s some motion to overhaul the cadet program, and this cadet is our unlucky guinea pig,” came the blunt explanation. “I have his file here, if you would like to view it.” 

Lazard held a manila envelope emblazed with the ShinRa logo out to him. Angeal accepted it gingerly and flipped the file open, and was startled to be met with a familiar face. There, stapled to the top of a thick stack of papers, was a picture of the cadet he had run into at the Meet and Greet a week ago. 

“Zack Fair?” Angeal asked, startled. 

“Do you know him?”

“We met briefly,” Angeal hedged. _This_ was the cadet being unanimously nominated for acceleration through the program? 

“You weren’t impressed,” Lazard surmised, the familiar small quirk once again tugging at his lips. Angeal struggled with the urge to wipe that smirk off his boss’s face, and won. Staring steadily across the desk at his Director, he shook his head. 

“Well, wait until you see his combat style,” Lazard suggested blithely. “If he’s really a poor choice, we can always pursue other options.” 

Angeal frowned. It was not honorable to indicate to a man that he would be promoted one week and ruin his dreams the next, and Angeal nursed severe disapproval of this particular facet of ShinRa’s corporate style. 

“Angeal,” Lazard said sternly, “I know this is an assignment you will hate. Perhaps it is an assignment that will prompt your hatred of me. Regardless, this is a directive from the upper echelons of ShinRa, and you are the only person who can make it happen. Fair _must_ be trained by a General. Sephiroth is good at inspiring his troops in horrible situations,” Angeal stared at him blankly – it was common knowledge that Sephiroth was given the most dangerous, riskiest assignments because the labs were ‘in constant need of more data,’ and it was often all the General could do to bring back the men who had gone out with him, but he was legendary for his successes in that endeavor, “and at inciting them to push their limits,” Lazard continued – and yes, Sephiroth’s army consistently held records for most limit breaks while on duty – “but he is not good at supporting his men away from the battlefield, and he has a low conception of the differences between his strength and that of unenhanced warriors.” Well, Angeal couldn’t disagree with that, but it wasn’t like it was Sephiroth’s _fault_. He didn’t really have anything to go on. “And Genesis would take one look at Fair and that would be the end of his decision-making process – the decision being whether he should ignore the boy completely or turn him into a plaything.” Angeal was impressed with Lazard’s assessment of his Generals – especially with how concisely and yet aptly he had pegged Genesis’ character. 

“And what is it you anticipate _I_ will do?” Angeal asked. 

“Put your all into the mission,” Lazard said simply, and then went on, “Angeal, you’ll look out for him, and you’ll make sure he’s learning, but you won’t coddle him or treat him like glass, and you’ll push his limits, but you won’t expect more from him than he can reasonably achieve. You’ll get the damn job done. Now are you ready to go see him?” 

“It doesn’t seem like I have much choice.” 

This time, Lazard granted him a true smile, and it was beautiful enough that Angeal almost forgave him for the horrible situation being dumped in his lap. It was also calculated enough that Angeal almost punched his boss in the face to make him stop. Almost. “That’s what I like to hear.” 

~-~-~ 

Angeal had followed Lazard to the observation room that looked down on the cadet gym. Like most exercise rooms in Shinra headquarters, the cadet gym was built with ease of viewing in mind, and it was a simple matter to watch the goings on of the room. Angeal picked Fair out of the group quickly. He was practicing his sword forms, a look of intense concentration on his face. Angeal immediately noticed that while his stance wasn’t perfect, it looked like he was naturally settling into something resembling strong footing, and most of what he lacked was practice and guidance. 

The boy was certainly not lacking in enthusiasm. He didn’t even have a real weapon yet, and was practicing with a wooden pole until he could prove himself capable around something more dangerous, but his partner was quickly wilting under his onslaught. Angeal watched with interest born of necessity: he had already settled into thinking of himself as Fair’s mentor, and was taking mental notes on the cadet’s performance to discuss later. 

“His grip is sloppy,” Angeal groused. He kept watching, and in less than two minutes, Zack had moved his hands to a better position. 

“No further complaints?” Lazard wondered aloud when Angeal had said nothing else by the time Cadet Fair put his pole away. “Maybe we should just skip the mentoring and promote him to SOLDIER now.”

“He improved his grip, but only because he was about to loose hold on that pole,” Angeal said irritably. “His stance is fine, to start, but his footwork is terrible, and it takes him far too long to get back into a stable position whenever he moves. He has a lot of enthusiasm, sure, and good energy, but he looks flighty. He hasn’t been able to concentrate long enough to make it through any of his combos yet, and at this level the things he’s trying are only a couple of moves strung together. He seems to be developing a nasty habit of whacking at his sparring partner like he’s using some sort of machete. And don’t even get me started on his core support.” 

“Sounds like you’ve got yourself a student,” Lazard said mildly, and when Angeal turned to glare at him, he was met with a bland smile. 

“It sounds like I’ve got myself a real pain in the ass,” he said bluntly. “If I take him without complaining, will you lay off me and the other generals a little? Just for today?” 

“You mean, if you take him without any _further_ complaining?” Lazard asked sweetly. “You and your friends can have the rest of the day off,” the Director added, musing, “ _if_ you go tell Fair about the change in his training regimen first.” 

“He doesn’t even _know_?” 

“I thought I would let you be the bearer of good news. I didn’t realize you two had a history.” 

“It’s not a ‘history,’” Angeal grumbled. The Director quirked an eyebrow at him. “Fine, I’m going. The rest of the day off!” Angeal shouted over his shoulder, striding out of the observation room. 

It took far less time than Angeal wanted to get down to the cadet gym, but once there he didn’t wait around. He had a free afternoon to get to and a couple of good friends to catch up with, and no cadet would keep him long. 

“Cadet Fair?” he said, approaching the boy. 

Zack looked up from his squats. “Be– I mean, uh. Sir!” he rose into a salute. 

Angeal sighed. He had no desire to ever learn what the cadet had been about to call him. “Cadet Fair, due to your performance in your classes over the past few weeks, you have been indicated for an accelerated program that, if successful, will push you into SOLDIER faster than would otherwise be possible. From here on, you will report directly to me.” Lazard had said Angeal would have free reign over the cadet’s training schedule, and Angeal was going to take advantage of that. 

Fair gave him a speculative look. “Are you sure, sir?” 

“ _What_ did you say to me, Cadet?” Angeal glared. Cadet Fair didn’t flinch. 

“Sorry, sir, but… I think you have the wrong guy.” 

Angeal stared at the boy for a moment longer. First questioning a superior officer, and then telling him he was wrong – to his face? The kid had balls, that was for sure but… he wasn’t very bright. And what the hell was his problem, anyway? Didn’t he _want_ to be in SOLDIER? 

“Come with me,” Angeal barked after a moment’s consideration. He obviously needed to sit Cadet Fair down and tell him point-blank what was going on, or the two of them would never get anywhere. 

“Uh, sir, I’m in the middle of –”

Angeal couldn’t believe it. “Are you refusing orders, Cadet?” he asked, voice dangerously low. “Or did you simply not hear me when I told you that from now on, you report to me? Do you know what it means to report to a superior officer, Cadet?” 

The look on Fair’s face was unreadable, and Angeal hated that more than any of the slights the boy had given him up to that point. Finally Fair broke eye contact, turning his gaze to the floor. “My apologies, sir. Right away.” Satisfied, Angeal turned to leave the room, confident that Fair would follow him. A number of frightened and curious Cadet eyes tracked their progress, but it was only a moment after they had exited the room before Angeal heard their drill sergeant demanding that they return to work. 

The general led his new charge to the elevators, trying to decide where to go. Lazard might still be in the observation room, and Angeal didn’t want to deal with him. There were few other places that were likely to be empty – his office? But Zack would be there a lot, from now on, and Angeal had a feeling this conversation they were about to have would be hard. He didn’t want Zack thinking about it every time he showed up for duty. 

Pulling out his access card, he swiped the pad by the elevator floor options as they got on, lighting up a number of floors that were off-limits to the general public – and to lowly cadets. 

A few people got on with them, riding for just a few floors. All looked curiously at the cadet in the general’s custody, well aware of the difference in rank and interested in the story behind their being together. Angeal glowered at them all, willing them not to ask questions, as Fair smiled nervously at everyone he saw. They were the last still on the elevator, and when they arrived at their destination, Angeal had to shove Fair to get him to stop staring and take a few steps forward. 

Successfully getting his cadet off the elevator, Angeal strode out past him onto the roof. It was usually empty – very few people had access, and it was rather too windy at midday for most of those to bother. The view was great, though, and the lack of railings were apparently enough to convince Fair he was about to get pushed off. 

Angeal sighed. “Listen, kid. You’re not in trouble.” 

Fair dragged his eyes off the view of the Midgar cityscape, and turned to look at his new commanding officer. Angeal didn’t wait for any further acknowledgement. 

“Your teachers think you have a lot of potential,” Angeal began, and Fair closed his eyes, looking pained. Angeal knit his brow in confusion, but pushed on. “But it’s also been identified that you… aren’t doing well, with the… structure, here.” He was trying to choose his words carefully, but it didn’t seem to be helping much. 

“Does everyone get the view?”

“Excuse me?”

“Ah. Sir, sorry. Does everyone get the view, _sir_?” Fair looked at him with pleading eyes. “Before they get fired? Or just the cadets who wash out before being hired in the first place?” 

Angeal sighed again. “You’re not being kicked out, Fair,” he said gruffly. 

“Really, because it sounds like I’m not going to be with the other cadets anymore – sir,” he added belatedly, voice high. Angeal hoped he didn’t start crying. 

“Look, Fair, stop fucking questioning me, for starters. I don’t know whom you did your protocol training with, but they should be court martialed. Now this is the last time I’m saying this: you’re not being kicked out.” Angeal enunciated each of his last five words very slowly and carefully, hoping they would finally sink in. “Sometimes people don’t do well with the cadet schedule. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. You’re just going a different route. It might even end up being a faster route,” Angeal added, though he thought he had said it before. Apparently the key to communicating with this kid was repeating yourself. 

Fair stared at his shoes. Finally, impatiently, Angeal said, “You have my permission to speak freely, Cadet.” 

It was another long, drawn-out moment before Cadet Fair spoke. “When we entered the program,” he started, and stopped abruptly. Angeal desperately refused to hear the harsh breath the cadet drew as a sob. “We were told some of us would wash out. If we couldn’t handle the training, or the course material, or the…” that was definitely NOT a sniff, “the schedule. And now here you’re telling me you don’t think I can handle the schedule, and I’m not going to be with the other cadets in my year anymore, and yet somehow that’s different from washing out.” 

Angeal told himself sternly that his heart was not breaking. This was teenage angst, pure and simple, and with a little reassurance – maybe a lot of reassurance – it would go away. “The higher-ups are using you as a guinea pig,” he said bluntly. _Real reassuring, Angeal_ , he thought, but he had the cadet’s attention and there was no backing down now. “A prototype. You and me both, kid. They want us to figure out if there’s another way – a way for kids like you, kids who show all the signs of being really great, but have something holding them back – for kids like that to get through without having to jump through all the hoops. Or, with expert training on what to expect from the hoops, anyway.” Angeal felt he was not doing a very good job of explaining. “Look, we’re both new at this, but I think – if you give up the defeatist attitude – I think we can make it work.” 

“Do I still have permission to speak freely? Sir?” 

Angeal nodded once, curtly. 

“Why… are you so adamant about making this happen? Wouldn’t it be easier to let me think I am washing out… to let me leave? You don’t even like me. Sir.”

Angeal took a deep breath. “You were given to me as a mission, Fair, and one that no one else in the entire army is suited to take. If I fail, it goes on my record. So you better goddamn succeed.” 

“But you don’t like me.” Zack said it not as an accusation, or a complaint. It was a question, and one he seemed to desperately want confirmed. 

“You’re right, Cadet, I don’t like you. But you don’t have to like a person to do a job well with him, and you don’t have to be liked to be successful. Keep that in mind.” Angeal would not be able to tolerate a people-pleaser. It would be enough effort keeping Fair on track without having to constantly reassure him. “And you don’t have to like a person to be straight with him, either.” 

Finally, Fair looked up and met his eyes again. “No,” he said slowly. “No, I think you’ve proved that today.” He waited a beat, and then asked, “Can I ask one more? Sir?”

“You may,” Angeal granted with a slight incline of his head after a moment’s consideration. 

“Um… why the roof?” 

~-~-~ 

_“Where are you, Angeal?”_ Genesis’ voice sounded tinny over the PHS. 

“I’m coming already.” Angeal was literally sprinting through the building, having escorted Cadet Fair back to a floor in his clearance range. His afternoon of freedom had begun, and he was ready for it. 

_“Well we’re crashed on Sephiroth’s couch. Get here fast and tell us everything.”_ Lazard had apparently contacted Sephiroth and Genesis to alert them to their half day off, although had neglected to give them any details on the cause. 

“Yeah. On my way,” Angeal panted into the PHS. 

_“And stop puffing like that, you sound like you’re about to asphyxiate. Have a little SOLDIER pride.”_

Angeal hung up on him. 

It didn’t take long to get to Sephiroth’s suite, and the door was open, waiting for him. “Angeal,” Sephiroth greeted calmly as his friend crashed through his door, “You forgot something earlier.” 

“Wha?” Angeal gasped. Maybe Genesis was right. He could have stood to run a little slower, right? 

“Your lunch, beardbrain,” Genesis drawled, and gestured to his cafeteria tray, neatly laid out on the coffee table in front of Sephiroth’s glorious couch. “We rescued it for you after you ditched us. Lucky you have such thoughtful friends.” 

Angeal collapsed onto the couch, laughing. So _this_ was what it felt like to have people who cared about you around. Over the past few months, he had forgotten. 

“So? What did Director Deusericus want?” Sephiroth inquired softly. 

“Hm,” Angeal grunted. He rearranged himself on the couch – into a more upright position, better for eating – and reached for his tray. Genesis pouted at the delay, but didn’t try to stop him. “You guys know the mentor program?” he asked around a mouthful. 

“Um. Aren’t you a little…”

“Overqualified?” Sephiroth supplied. 

“Yeah,” Angeal agreed heartily. “But not just because I’m a lofty First.” The three friends traded smirks. They alone knew how little glory the job truly held. “They want me to, er, _supervise_ a cadet.” 

“A _cadet_?” Genesis screeched. 

“Supervise?” Sephiroth repeated at the same time. 

“Yeah, apparently he’s ‘got a lot of potential’ and they ‘don’t want to lose him’ and think he’s ‘a great candidate for SOLDIER.’ Except, you know, he can’t do anything.” 

“Why…?” Sephiroth mused.

“A _cadet_?” Genesis whispered, shocked. 

Angeal shrugged. “I don’t know. I told him to stay with the rest of the cadets for today, while I figure out what to do with him. But…” they all traded glances. What the hell were you _supposed_ to do with a cadet? 

“Is he hot?” Genesis asked after a moment. 

“He’s fourteen,” Angeal replied tiredly. 

Genesis looked like he was about to protest – Angeal hadn’t answered his question – but Sephiroth silenced him with a look. “Is there anything we can do?” he offered. He obviously had no idea _what_ to do, but Angeal appreciated the offer all the same. 

“Yeah,” Angeal said slowly. “Yeah. Let’s have the night we planned, and forget about everything else for now.” He smiled at his friends, and their answering grins were all he needed to know he had made the right call. 

With a mischievous glint in his eye, Genesis announced proudly, “It’s party time.”

He and Angeal turned to look at Sephiroth, who looked levelly back for a moment. Then, “Cake?” he suggested.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND ON THAT NOTE. 
> 
> So, first I would like to apologize for the long wait. I know it hasn’t even been three weeks, and my updating schedule is pretty fast compared to some other people, but I have been desperately trying to update this whole time, and I kept getting thwarted (getting all my residents to move out, graduating, moving out myself, packing and then unpacking again, etc.). On top of all that, this is not the chapter that was originally scheduled for this slot, but I have been having enormous trouble getting that chapter to work, so rather than keep beating my head against it I thought I would write something else instead. It’s quite a bit longer than usual – consider it my apology to you. 
> 
> As always, your comments and criticisms are welcome!


	8. Riddle Me This

**Riddle Me This**   
**Word count: 232**   
**20.6.14**

Genesis loved puzzles. He loved the challenge, he loved the way they required more intellect than strength, and he loved that they came in all shapes and sizes. He also loved that he was good at them. 

He was going to figure this out. His numerous queries through ShinRa official and other online databases featuring keywords such as “eye contact,” “jolt,” “shock,” and “electricity” were turning up a very odd assortment of potential phenomena. 

Most indicated that he was attracted to Cadet Fair. Since Cadet Fair was beautiful, it was obvious (to Genesis) that Genesis would be attracted to him. But he didn’t feel the same way when he locked eyes with Sephiroth, whom he also found attractive. Even if attraction played a part in it, that couldn’t be the whole solution. 

The ShinRa science department was turning up an interesting collection of data from a scrapped study on dominance between mako-enhanced SOLDIER and civilians or, in this case, unenhanced cadets. Apparently there was a possibility that Genesis had experienced the prey drive associated with encountering something weaker but still interesting. This _would_ explain why he felt nothing with Sephiroth: the General was obviously not weaker than Genesis. 

But… but. Even though he had overpowered the cadet so quickly (and really, what other outcome was there), Fair hadn’t _felt_ weak. 

It was a puzzle, and one that Genesis was determined to solve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it’s really short! And it’s been a long time! I’m pretty bad, huh? Ok, I’ll make it up to you! Next chapter should be up later this weekend! (All the exclamation points!) 
> 
> Oh yeah! The story’s title changed. It used to be obnoxious and long and Latin, and now it’s obnoxious and long and English. That makes it sound like I translated the old title, but I totally didn’t. Anyway, formerly Canis Lupus Familiaris Zacharius is no longer. Say hello to HEROISM!


	9. Thinking it Through

**Thinking it Through**  
Word Count: 1069

Angeal barricaded himself in his office and sat down to think. 

_“What if you got him a pet?”_

He’d suggested it so blithely, like it was actually a good idea. What had he been thinking? Zack couldn’t keep a pet. He may have only been a Third, but he was staring promotion in the face, and he was getting sent on missions pretty regularly. He was, in fact, probably the most slammed SOLDIER of them all at the moment: having proved himself, just about, capable enough to be a Second, he was treated as the best of the Thirds, which, to Lazard, made him the most ideal candidate for Third-rank missions. As good as he was, he was unlikely to fuck up, and HR tended to prefer the lower risk. 

He was getting sent out nearly every day, and on days he wasn’t out in the field, Hojo had him locked up in the damn simulations room. While having a pet to come home to would certainly improve his overall mood, there were too many other variables to consider. 

Zack would feel like he wasn’t taking good enough care of it, to start. He would be worried. It might affect how he did on missions. He could get hurt. 

And what if he got sent away for a prolonged period of time? Of course the other generals would do what they could to fill in, but what if _they_ got sent off? Zack had plenty of friends, sure, but things could get hectic at SOLDIER very quickly. The absolute _last_ thing any of them needed was Zack coming home from an unexpectedly long mission to find his dearly beloved pet dead from starvation on his kitchen floor. What a nightmare. 

Aside from his chaotic work life, there were other considerations as well. There were specific things that would be good in a pet for Zack and other things that were… less ideal. He would need something he could play with, preferably something soft that he could pet or cuddle or curl up with, if it was to be a stand-in for Sephiroth’s aloofness. But Zack played rough, and like many SOLDIER, he wasn’t always aware of how his enhanced strength compared to that of an average person – or animal, as the case may be. 

Maybe a guard hound, like Rufus’ Dark Nation, was the way to go? That thing was a beast, and with its defensive abilities it would certainly be able to stand up to a little SOLDIER roughhousing. Guard hounds were supposed to be incredibly loyal, though. Zack might not appreciate an animal that couldn’t get along with his friends. 

Although on the plus side, it might give him a convenient ‘in’ with Rufus. Normally Angeal wouldn’t approve of Zack becoming close with the President’s son, but recently he had begun to notice an increased Turk interest in Zack. If Rufus could be persuaded to feel affectionately toward his student, he might intercede on the boy’s behalf with the Turks, and more to the better. 

Aside from a guard hound, what else was there? Zack did well with animals of all kinds, and even most monsters tended to like him well enough. Angeal still shuddered thinking about the group of Mandragoras Zack had tried to bring home with him that time. The stings they got pulling those things out of his luggage were brutal. But Zack had begged and begged to keep them, and in the end had released them in a downtown park. As far as Angeal knew, he still fed them. 

Maybe he was coming at this from the wrong angle. An animal might not be the right answer, no matter how resilient it turned out to be. Maybe what Zack needed was a human companion, someone who had no sexual interest in him to threaten his relationship with Sephiroth but who would still be able to cuddle with him any time. There had to be someone who could help in this situation. 

What kind of person would be good for Zack, though? Someone energetic, obviously, to keep up with him. And they would have to be comfortable around Sephiroth, too, or else it would never work out. That qualification alone would rule most applicants out; after all, it was already something of a miracle that Zack was as comfortable around Sephiroth as he was, so asking that of a second person would probably be too much. But the point was that Zack was in a relationship with Sephiroth, so that had to come first – it would be useless to find someone Zack could cuddle with if cuddling that person meant breaking up with his boyfriend. 

It would have to be someone in ShinRa, then. Only Turks, ranking SOLDIER, and scientists working for Hojo could deal with Sephiroth with any kind of calm functionality, so it would have to be someone from those ranks. But Angeal didn’t want Zack anywhere near the Turks – they were dangerous at best and at worst would completely destroy everything he had been working for years to build in Zack. And among SOLDIER, while the 2nds knew Sephiroth cared about them, they all still thought of him as a commanding officer. They weren’t comfortable with him. 

Angeal didn’t even want to think about what might happen to Zack if he started cuddling with a scientist. He would probably end up growing fat in the labs while they studied the extent his affections could be pushed. 

If all the human options were out – and they were, it was clear to see – that only left an animal. 

Frown deepening, Angeal pressed his mind to the limits. What would be a good pet for Zack? Surely there was something – there had to be. Reviewing his requirements, Angeal tried to think of a resilient, cuddle-friendly creature that could play hard and mostly manage on its own – or be managed elsewhere? That was it. An animal that was being taken care of by someone else, an animal that Zack could visit whenever he wanted to but not have the responsibility of caring for day-to-day – that would be perfect! 

Sighing happily, Angeal relaxed. Sephiroth was smarter than he was, so he was confident the General would also come up with the right solution. By New Years, there would be a massive databank of pictures of Zack adorably cuddling a chocobo. Angeal was looking forward to it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I re-wrote this chapter like four times and I’m still not happy with it, so I’m giving up. Angeal strikes me as the kind of guy who would just sit and think through an idea, and possibly beat himself up over it, but I don’t feel like his character really shines through here. The best I can say is that I sort of managed a protective/concerned vibe. :( 
> 
> Next chapter will feature smut, so let me know if you’re more eager to see Zack/Sephiroth or Zack/Genesis first, and I’ll get right on it.


	10. Up and at 'Em (SMUT)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains explicit sexual content. Specifically: M/M, anal, oral, fingering, mild tit torture. Proceed at your own risk.

**Up and at ‘Em**  
Word Count: 3816

Genesis made a low noise of contentment. Running the fingers of one hand through his lover’s spiky hair, he nuzzled the base of the brunette’s tan neck, letting his other arm drape over the younger man’s waist and draw designs on his stomach. Zack grumbled a little in response, sleepily, and Genesis smiled. Zack was always drowsy after the first time, but Genesis knew from experience that if he made the effort to rouse his lover early, the younger SOLDIER could easily go all night. 

Sliding his left hand up, Genesis playfully tweaked and pinched a dusky nipple, twisting and pulling until Zack responded with a small moan. Genesis loved the noises Zack made, and diligently went out of his way to draw them out… not that it really took much effort, most of the time. 

Zack swatted at his hand half-heartedly. “Tired,” he mumbled. Ignoring him, Genesis squirmed his right arm under his lover’s side to reach his other nipple. Pulling the boy back against his chest, Genesis gave his new prize the same treatment, using his long nails to deliver an extra pinch. Zack gasped loudly, and Genesis delighted in the sound. Still, a gasp was just a quick breath – Genesis hadn’t won until Zack screamed. 

Continuing to pinch his lover’s right nipple harshly, Genesis trailed his left hand down to Zack’s hardening cock, gripping it tightly and beginning to pull with long, full strokes. Letting up for a moment, he reached lower to cup and massage Zack’s balls, stretching the tips of his fingers to stroke and gently run his nails over the sensitive skin behind them. Zack was panting roughly, leaning into Genesis’ touch, and when the redhead squeezed his balls a little harder he let out a low moan. 

Genesis pressed even closer up against him, moving to lick his lover’s ear. Zack, he had discovered, had very sensitive ears, and he abused that knowledge now, drawing little whimpers and gasps out of his lover with every lick and nip. Returning to stroking Zack’s stiff cock, he whispered, “I want you to fuck me.” 

Zack bucked into Genesis’ grip at that, before twisting out of it to face his lover. Pushing the redhead down until he could hold himself above the man, Zack stared at him intensely, eyes beginning to glaze over with lust. 

Genesis eyed his handiwork. For a rush job, it was pretty decent: Zack’s cock was flushed and becoming damp at the tip, and his one badly abused nipple was peaked and angry, reddened beyond nature and looking like it might even bruise. Well, Genesis had a Cure on hand for nights when he and Zack played rough. He met Zack’s eyes coyly, but the way he spread his legs in invitation was anything but: with grace and purpose, he opened himself for his lover, smirking up at him. 

Zack glared. “I was trying to sleep,” he said grumpily. 

Genesis rolled his eyes. Zack knew full well what a night with Genesis entailed, and he had been the one to ask if he could come over. “And I’m trying to get laid,” he responded lightly. “I don’t allow freeloading in my army, Fair. Earn your keep.” 

“Or what, you’ll throw me out?” Zack asked cockily. “And? What do you expect me to use for lube?” 

Genesis spread his legs as wide as he could, with Zack boxing him in. “How about a Cure?” he suggested lightly. 

Zack raised an eyebrow incredulously. Take Genesis dry and worry about fixing him after? _Hot!_ “Fuck _that_. Your highness is so damn tight, I can barely fit with extra slippery.”

“Then _figure something out_ ,” Genesis whined, needy and impatient. It had always annoyed him that he got so aroused just by touching his lovers, but Zack loved it, and seeing his lover turned on like this usually threw him into overdrive. “What happened to the stuff we had?” Genesis complained, squirming a little for show. 

“You used the last of it on me an hour ago,” Zack reminded him, absently reaching down to stroke his lover while he figured out the conundrum. Their first time that night had been pretty juiceless. It was one thing for Zack, who liked it rough, and was rather enjoying the burn he could still feel in his lower back, but Genesis was kind of a princess. He needed to be pampered. _Still_ , Zack considered. _If he’s _asking_ for it…_

No. Genesis was just trying to get him hot and bothered, and it was working, but it wasn’t an excuse to mistreat his lover. He would do the prep properly, and the aftercare, too. Besides, the slower he went, the more time there would be to draw out every sensation for his lover. 

“Zaaaack,” Genesis whined, bucking and writhing underneath him. “Hurry!”

Zack rolled his eyes and climbed off the bed. The bathroom was closest, and Genesis kept his special hand lotion in there (“It helps with my sword calluses”), which would probably serve their purposes. Zack would be careful. He grabbed it and a couple of the condoms from the drawer, as Genesis hadn’t thought to bring more than one earlier. _Inconsiderate bastard_ , he thought fondly. 

Returning to the bedroom, he stopped to take in the sight before him. Genesis was splayed out on the bed, one knee drawn up and pulled wide by a hand to his creamy thigh, his other arm busy running fingers lightly up and down the underside of his dripping cock. His cheeks were flushed, and a sheen of sweat glittered over his forehead and chest. 

Zack watched him hungrily as he put on a condom, trusting the slight compression of the thing to help him hold back a while longer. Sure, they were stretchy, and could pretty much fit on anyone, any size, but they stayed on for a reason: they were tight. Rolling the carbon down his length with one hand, Zack uncapped the lotion with the other, and managed to squeeze a bit out onto his fingers. Recapping the bottle, he tossed it onto the bed for easy future access, along with the other condoms he had brought with him. They would get their chance. 

Crawling up the bed, he swatted Genesis’ hand away, earning a needy moan for his trouble. “Let me,” he whispered huskily, but didn’t immediately replace his lover’s hand with his own. Instead, he brought his lubed fingers up to Genesis’ tight hole, and rubbed his index over it a few times, up the crack of his ass, back down, all the way to his perineum, and back again, putting just a little more pressure on the opening each time he went by. Genesis thrashed on the bed below him, moaning wantonly. 

Zack leaned over and kissed his lover’s stomach lightly, before pressing his lips down harder to nip and suck at the milky skin. He liked to leave evidence of where he’d been, just as Genesis liked discovering his new assortment of spots the morning after one of their nights together. 

Zack kept up his agonizingly slow pace for a few more minutes, drawing it out. Adding more lotion to his index finger, he brought the tip back to Genesis’ tight hole, and just barely began to push it inside. Genesis cried out almost immediately, and in response Zack twisted that barest inch of finger inside, spreading the lotion, loosening that intense ring of muscle. Genesis was _so_ tight; Zack always wondered how it wasn’t too painful for him to enjoy being fucked. 

The fact that it wasn’t was apparent, as Genesis rocked himself back and forth, trying to draw more of that finger into his body. Obligingly, Zack slipped it in farther, before beginning to thrust it in and out. “More,” Genesis moaned. 

Zack ignored him for a while longer, until he could get his entire finger in up to the last knuckle. Hooking his finger, he drew it out slowly, just fast enough to make Genesis shake and shiver around him. Zack noticed Genesis had returned his hand to his aching cock, and gently pulled it away, setting it down on the bedspread. Thrusting his finger a few more times unconcernedly, he waited until he saw that hand begin to rhythmically clench the blanket before he returned to his own task. 

Making sure it was fully coated in lotion, Zack added another finger to his assault, thrusting in gently. Genesis cried out, and Zack smiled. He loved it when Genesis lost control like this. It wasn’t that it was a particularly rare occurrence, but the feeling of utter trust was a heady one, and Zack cherished it, along with the man below him. 

Genesis’ raised knee had begun to shake, and Zack carefully drew the man’s hand off his thigh and laid the leg down, bringing the hand to his dark hair. It was a good way for them to feel connected, and Zack loved it when Genesis would sometimes accidentally tug on him just a little too hard. 

“Fuck me already,” Genesis gasped. 

Zack looked up at him, worried. Two fingers were not enough for Genesis, who had difficulty relaxing even on his best days. On the other hand, the redhead did like to be in control, and having his lovers follow his orders was a major turn on for him. Zack struggled with the conundrum. Finally, he decided to add another finger first, and risk Genesis’ wrath. At worst, the general would push him down and sit in his lap, and any discomfort he got from that would be his own damn fault. At least Zack would have done his best to _try_ to prepare him. 

Genesis let out a guttural moan, and Zack knew he’d made the right call. Sometimes it was hard to tell needy Genesis apart from dominating Genesis, especially in bed, but patience usually won the day. Of course, there was patience, and then there was purposefully drawing things out for fun – and with Genesis, drawing things out was almost _always_ fun. Pumping his fingers, Zack weighed the pros and cons of adding a fourth – maybe the index off his other hand? It would be tricky to support himself in that position, though. Shifting a little, his fingers nudged Genesis’ prostate, and the man bucked his hips, thrusting and swearing. 

Seeing the general’s dripping cock shoved right into his face, Zack decided to change his plans a little. He gave up on the idea of a fourth finger, opting instead to lean forward and wrap his mouth around that dripping cock, sucking lightly as he pummeled the older man’s prostate ruthlessly. 

“Goddess,” Genesis sobbed, and Zack would have smirked if his mouth could bend that way around the intrusion. Genesis only invoked his Goddess when he was about to come, and Zack was delighted to let him. He almost wanted to himself, so that he would be able to last a little longer when he finally found his way home inside his lover’s body. 

Pulling back, Zack stretched awkwardly to reach one of the condoms he had dropped on the bed earlier without removing his fingers from the First’s ass. Happy now that he had practiced opening the damn things one handed and without his teeth, he brought the plastic disk to his mouth, holding the air pocket between lip-covered teeth as he brought the condom to Genesis’ weeping erection. Gently, cautiously, Zack began using his tongue and lips to push the rim down over his lover’s cock, and managed to get about halfway before he had to finish with his hand. Silently congratulating himself – it was not as easy as Genesis had made it look the first time he performed that trick – Zack resumed his attentions. 

Genesis gasped as Zack’s mouth returned to his cock and let out a loud moan. Zack watched his face as the orgasm rose in his lover, enjoying the intense flush in his cheeks and the way the skin on his torso and hips twitched and trembled, shivering in the warm bedroom air from the overwhelming pleasure Zack was delivering. Genesis was so responsive, it was like every time Zack touched him it lit a fire under his skin, and it was clear from the look on his lover’s face that he was desperately close. 

Pitilessly drilling his fingers into Genesis’ prostate and sucking with skill gained through practice, Zack brought the redhead to a sobbing climax, continuing to watch the general’s face. Just as Genesis came, his eyes snapped open, and endless ocean met infinite sky as their gazes locked. This was Zack’s favorite part: when Genesis forgot everything else, and his whole world narrowed down to just Zack and the pleasure Zack was giving him. 

Pulling the condom off his lover’s spent cock, Zack tied it carefully and tossed it aside, rubbing a hand up and down Genesis’ length to capitalize on that post-orgasm sensitivity and draw out his lover’s pleasure. It would be a while before he was ready to go again, but Zack had no such time restraint. 

Gently removing his fingers, Zack looked up to see Genesis staring down at him with a dazed expression on his face. “You still want me to do you tonight?” Zack asked casually. 

In response, Genesis moaned and brought both of his knees up, spreading his legs as wide as he could. “ _Please_ ,” he begged, voice raw. 

Zack couldn’t refuse. Arranging himself above his lover so that he could support his weight on one hand, he used the other to guide his cock up against Genesis’ tight hole, holding it steady as he gradually pushed in. Agonizingly slowly, he edged just the head past that tight ring of muscle, and stopped. 

Genesis was a wreck below him. His face flushed and sweating, eyes screwed shut, Genesis breathed in short, quick gasps, back arching ever so slightly off the bed toward his lover. The first time Zack had seen him like this, he had almost pulled out, terrified he had hurt his general. Now, he held himself still, enjoying the spectacle, and just as Genesis began to regain control of his breathing, Zack pushed in just another half inch, and the show began again with a shouted “Oh God, yes!”. 

Genesis’ ass was like a vice grip around Zack’s cock, and it was as though the farther Zack pushed in, the dizzier he got under the onslaught of overwhelming sensation. Continuing to push in cautiously, slowly, he drew out every moan and gasp as if they were precious gems, each to be appreciated and delighted in no matter its size or shape. 

Zack pressed up against his lover’s prostate, and Genesis sobbed. “Yes, God, yes, Zack, more, harder, please, Zack,” rained the words, like a litany from his lover’s lips. 

“Tell me what you want,” Zack growled, almost out of control and trying desperately to maintain his slow place instead of hammering into Genesis with all the strength and speed he could afford. 

“Fuck me,” he begged, and Zack thrust in deeper. 

“Tell me how you want it, _General_ ,” Zack demanded, knowing the title could easily throw Genesis over the edge. Sure enough, despite his recent orgasm, Genesis’ cock gave a little jump, suddenly hardening again, and Genesis bucked and writhed beneath him. 

Genesis gazed up at him, eyes glazed over and pupils blown, a look of lostness and need so acute Zack smiled and leaned down to kiss him. “Hmm?” he prompted playfully, knowing the motion had changed his angle inside his lover by the way Genesis gasped and grabbed him, sinking manicured nails into his brunette lover’s back as he clung desperately. 

“Tell me how you want it, Genesis,” Zack whispered in his lover’s ear as Genesis raked his hands down Zack’s back. 

“Hard,” Genesis gasped in a voice that sounded almost broken. “Fuck me hard. Ahh, Zack! Please fuck me! Fuck me into this fucking mattress!” he screamed. 

“How do you want me to fuck you?” Zack teased. 

“I want you to fuck me so hard I can feel your dick in my fucking throat, you piece of shit!”

Zack laughed and pulled back, and Genesis swore angrily. Zack couldn’t care less if Genesis was annoyed at the taunting: the redhead’s hard cock and welcoming ass were all the indications he needed that his efforts were appreciated, teasing or none. It wouldn’t be long now before he was fully seated, and then the fun would really begin. 

Zack continued his assault, rolling his hips forward as he sunk in little by little, enjoying the reactions he drew out of Genesis as he moved. Genesis moaned loudly, continuing to growl angrily at his tease of a lover, rocking his hips as he tried to force Zack’s cock deeper into his ass. Zack held back in response, continuing his excruciatingly slow pace. 

“Tell me you’re not enjoying this,” Zack smiled, sliding in further. 

“Fuck you,” Genesis groaned. 

“Almost, Nessie,” Zack whispered, jerking his hips slightly to remind the redhead below him he could change the rules of their game at any time. 

“Don’t call me that,” Genesis tried to grump, but the effect was rather ruined by the way he arched and trembled as Zack slid all the way home inside of him. 

Zack stopped there, holding still as he waited for Genesis’ attention to return to him. Other lovers probably didn’t torment each other in bed to the same extremes as he and Genesis did, Zack thought, but his relationship with Genesis seemed to be mostly based on how much fun they had taunting each other – and as most of their activities together involved fucking in some way, it seemed only natural that the teasing should extend to that avenue. 

Besides, it wasn’t like Genesis made it very difficult. The man was such a control freak, all Zack had to do to screw with him was refuse to obey his orders. And sometimes – sometimes, if Zack played his cards just right, he could manipulate Genesis into taking control. 

“Are you going to move sometime this century, you fucker?!” 

Zack laughed lightly. “Impatient? Don’t tell me you have a busy schedule.” 

That was the tipping point. Genesis snarled and lunged up, twisting Zack down underneath him until Genesis could sit above him, straddling his waist and perched on his cock. Genesis let his knees stabilize his position and brought his hands to Zack’s chest, alternating with gentle strokes to his soft skin and harsh pinches to the boy’s pebbled nipples. Zack moaned lowly, thrusting up at his lover, and Genesis closed his eyes for a moment as the pleasure washed through him. 

This position let him take Zack in fully, deeper than he was used to, but it also gave Genesis greater opportunity to manage his own pleasure. Genesis rose up on his knees until only the head of Zack’s cock remained inside him, and then sank down quickly, moaning his delight loudly. Zack bucked up to meet him, and Genesis rode his lover hard, increasing their pace with every thrust, building their mutual pleasure with every motion.

It was Zack’s turn to look overwhelmed, and the brunette moaned loudly, every witty, teasing phrase gone from memory as he gave in to the sensations. He raised his hands to Genesis’ hips, not sure if he was helping to guide the other’s movements or just trying desperately to hold on as Genesis bucked above him. 

Genesis dragged his nails down Zack’s chest, leaving red scratches in their wake. Zack whimpered, crying out as Genesis dug his nails into the soft skin below his waist, scraping harshly. “Tell me you’re not enjoying this,” he growled, parroting Zack’s earlier words back at him. 

Zack’s only response was to thrust harder, pulling Genesis down by the hips to magnify each movement. 

Genesis gasped, face flushed as Zack pummeled into him, inconsistent strokes rubbing past, slamming into, or just barely brushing his prostate in random alternation, dragging him right up to the edge and holding him there. Genesis yanked on a lock of Zack’s hair to communicate his annoyance, but Zack just smiled up at him, obviously completely unbothered, and kept at it, his long, infuriatingly irregular strokes pushing Genesis closer and closer toward completion. 

Genesis leaned down to press himself along Zack’s torso, ruining his lover’s efforts to maintain his deep thrusts. Genesis kissed Zack thoroughly, swallowing his moans and whimpers as he fucked the boy’s mouth with his tongue. 

Releasing the kiss, Genesis pulled back a bit to admire the effect he had on his lover, and Zack lay still beneath him, trembling and panting as he struggled to remember what he had been doing. It still surprised Genesis, how amazing just kissing Zack could be, but that wasn’t the point tonight. 

Leaning over, Genesis licked and kissed Zack’s ear, drawing another moan out of his sensitive lover. “Fuck me, Zack,” he whispered. 

Zack held Genesis gently has he turned them over, laying the redhead back against the pile of pillows at the top of his bed. Genesis let his lips trail away from Zack’s ear, lightly kissing his jawbone, under his chin, down his neck, and along his collarbone as Zack began to move inside him again. 

“I’m close,” Genesis moaned against Zack’s neck. 

“More?” Zack offered, and Genesis wasn’t sure if he sounded more hopeful or exhausted. 

“All of it,” Genesis demanded, and Zack obliged, recreating the long, hard thrusts they had both been enjoying so much before. They were both riding close to the edge, and Genesis resumed his exploration of Zack’s neck, kissing, licking and sucking on the sensitive skin, leaving tiny bruises that no one would see under his uniform turtleneck. 

“Ahh, there!” Genesis moaned as one of Zack’s angle changed and the brunette was giving just enough pressure to that sensitive spot inside him, not painfully over stimulating with direct pounding or underwhelming with inattention. 

Zack smiled and worked to keep the angle, his speed also settling into a rhythm as he watched the spectacle unfolding across his lover’s features. Moments later, Genesis came, first with a shout and then following with a harsh bite into Zack’s neck as he rode out his pleasure, arching against Zack as he came. Startled by the sudden pain, Zack followed him into orgasm, screaming his release with abandon before falling to lie at Genesis’ side, spent. 

They both spent a moment panting harshly, trying to calm their breath and relax after the experience. Suddenly Zack groaned. 

“Urrgh, you came all over me, gross.” 

“Shut _up_ , Zack. Do you know how many men would pay to have my jizz sprayed all over them?” 

Zack let out a couple of breathy pants in approximation of a laugh. “You know what this means, right?” he asked after a moment. 

Genesis arched an elegant eyebrow at him. 

“Round three in the shower.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaand I’ll let you imagine what happens in the shower. Readers, this is the first smut chapter I’ve posted in four years, and the only one I’ve ever actually been sort of proud of. Was it hot? It was, right? Let me know! There appears to be an inbox function on AO3 but I don’t actually see any options to SEND messages other than through the public comments system, so if you’re uncomfortable with that you can PM me over at ffnet. 
> 
> No one had any feedback about whether to do Zairoth or Rhapsair first, so I went with Rhapsair for a couple of reasons: this chapter was closer to being done, I’m writing a Zairoth oneshot that’ll go up soon and should tide you all over, and I’m really, really tired of Rhapsair. I figure the fastest way to no longer have to write their dumb bratty smut scenes is to finish all of them so I can move on. 
> 
> * Genesis has a foul mouth and Zack is learning from him. Angeal is Not Pleased. Haha. 
> 
> * The term “juiceless” was suggested by FFLove190. As ever, thank you for your unending efforts to support my vocabulary, my dear! 
> 
> * Carbon-based condoms: the external contraceptive of the future! Not that either Genesis or Zack needs to worry about conceiving a child, and I have no doubt Hojo has done something to limit the spread of transmittable disease through the ranks of SOLDIER, but I like to see safe sex made sexy all the same.  
> For further information about graphene condoms: http://www.upworthy.com/the-condom-of-the-future-looks-like-one-people-would-actually-be-excited-to-wear?c=ufb1


	11. A Place for Everyone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to apologize for the hiatus. I know we’re all somewhat resigned to the author who updates once a year (or less), but that’s really not me and being away from you guys for even a month (I think it’s been a bit longer) has been really rough. It took a while to get my head around this chapter, but I guess I’m happy with it now, so I hope you all enjoy it. It’s probably really choppy and weird, now that I think about it. I’m not a very linear thinker, so please excuse any loose ends that I forgot. (Tell me about them, though, I can always address them in a later chapter.) 
> 
> Maybe writing smut was too much for me, and I got all burnt out? Last chapter took sooo much effort. Bleh.

**A Place for Everyone (and Everyone in His Place)**  
Word Count: 5025

Zack spared a moment to wipe the sweat away from his eyes with a corner of his shirt before he had to return to his masterpiece. Surrounded by chaos, and with an epic mess in his wake, he couldn’t be happier. There had been a series of big catches lately, and although Zack was much too young to score the quality pieces, he was going to make do with what he had – and oh, what fun he was having with it! Feast nights were the best, because he could sneak his dishes in with the rest and load up on that fizzy feeling of people eating his food and enjoying it. 

Zack was new to cooking, but a combination of interest, curiosity, enthusiasm, and adventurousness had him picking up new tricks and skills faster than many of the women around the cookpots thought strictly fair. Zack was usually so scattered, everyone thought he would be a disaster around a fire, but being given five things to keep track of at once had unlocked his ability to focus. The boy seemed to have an innate sense of time that triggered him to check on his dishes right when they were ready to come off the heat, to drain his noodles when they were perfectly soft but not soggy, to cut leaves only so far in advance of using them that he could prepare them at a convenient time, without leaving them long enough to brown or wilt. 

The women were affectionate with him, and sympathetic to his mother, who had finally, it seemed, found a useful way of keeping him out of trouble. They shared their knowledge readily, instructing him on techniques for harvesting, grinding, and mixing spices, on methods for softening and tenderizing tough connective tissues, and showing him the importance of stocks and broths made of the “waste” parts of the food in the overall presentation. Zack went into cooking humbly, and treated each kernel of knowledge as an important treasure. 

Simply seeing his neighbors eat the food he prepared was enough to encourage Zack to be the best cook he could be, but it was the fact that his neighbors started requesting things from him – things they could get elsewhere, or make themselves, fairly easily – as though his product was worthwhile, that really got his attention. Zack had never been good at anything before. He had the village record for times turned into a frog, of course – how could he resist the Touch Mes? Everything about them begged him to touch them! – to the point that his mother had started to refuse to turn him back, but that didn’t count as a skill. In fact, on the contrary, being turned into a frog was almost certainly an imposition. 

There were a lot of things Zack wanted to do, of course. Cooking was largely considered women’s work, and Zack would never have tried it except that he was forbidden from doing most of the things the other boys occupied their time with, so Zack always ended up being left at home. He wasn’t allowed to work on net repairs with the boys who fancied sea fishing, because he just held them in his hands and forgot what he was supposed to be doing until the nets ended up in a huge tangle. He couldn’t work on repairing or making any of the other fishing equipment, because lines tangled as badly as nets and fishhooks ended up embedded in his fingers. He was too distracted and slow to clean the boats and had no skill with woodworking to repair them. River fishing had been suggested for him, and everyone thought as long as someone else baited his hook and set his line for him he wouldn’t get into too much trouble, but as it turned out his high-energy lifestyle was frightening to the fish, and his large movements and loud voice scared them away. 

Zack really wanted to try noodling, but his mother put her foot down, and even his father, always encouraging him to find an appropriate occupation for a man, agreed that hand-catching catfish was out of the question for him. Zack had tried it anyway, of course – the allure of a useful skill like hunting that was also dangerous, as proven by the number of villagers who had lost or almost lost fingers, was impossible to resist. At first, he hadn’t been able to dive nearly far enough to be effective. Catfish lived at river bottom, and the river ran deep and slow near Gongaga. That made conditions ideal for the breeding catfish, of course, but difficult for divers, who sometimes had to go twenty feet down on one breath to get near the fish. Of course, there were fish who holed up just a few feet down, but Zack would never impress _anyone_ at those depths. 

It hadn’t gone well, to say the least. On his first attempt, Zack freaked out and shot back up to the surface. The only thing he accomplished that time was to kick up a bunch of mud and grit at the bottom of the river, ruining the visibility for several long minutes full of the glares of his friends as they waited for the river to clear again. His second time, knowing a little more what to expect, Zack had been able to hold his breath for quite a while – not least because everything he saw under the surface was fascinating. It was so interesting, in fact, that he not only forgot he was looking for catfish holes, he also failed to notice he had limited breath, and ended up remembering suddenly, choking, and barely making it back to the surface. Convinced he would drown if he went down again, the older kids who were leading the excursion flatly refused to let Zack back in the water. 

When his father found out how he spent his day, Zack was prepared for the scolding of a lifetime, so he was surprised when instead his father grabbed him up in a rare display of affection and held him close for several long, tense moments. Zack peeked over his father’s shoulder to see his mother crying quietly, and, thinking his parents were too mad to yell, whispered, “I’m sorry.” 

“We’re just glad you’re ok, Zack,” his mom said quietly, while his dad squeezed him tighter. “Those fish weigh almost as much as you do, honey, so don’t scare us like that.” Zack, shocked that his parents, usually so fed up with his misbehavior, were actually frightened for him, vowed there and then never to disobey them again. 

After that, Zack diverted his attention to other activities, most of which were much the same in result if not in execution. Zack forgot what he was doing, got distracted, and ended up occupying himself with something else – often something fairly destructive to the efforts of the rest of his group. 

“I don’t understand,” his father had said in frustration one night after his family had retired to their home. Zack had been sent out to look for Flower Prongs with a group that day. The prongs they displayed when they were low on health could be harvested and were a primary ingredient in Maiden’s Kisses. Zack’s job was just to follow along and hold the sack they were stuffing full of prongs. He was to stay in the rear of the group, not go off on his own, not get injured, and not cause trouble. 

Zack had focused really hard on staying where he was supposed to be, following right behind an older kid who in turn was trying to execute his own job. Then Zack had happened to glance off to the side of the trail, and saw it: the most magnificent of animals, the non-monster that was still strong enough to protect itself in the jungle, gentle enough that its domestic cousins lounged in the village shade. A gaur. Zack’s eyes were like saucers as he stared at the graceful bow and curve of the beast’s heavy horns, and before he knew what he was doing he had taken off after it. 

The group he was with hadn’t noticed his absence until they needed him, and by then he had already managed to climb onto the giant cow, somehow without agitating the creature, and be carried off to rejoin the herd, farther and farther away from Gongaga village. Zack spent the afternoon playing with the new spring calves under the protective watch of the cows until a Gagighandi appeared suddenly and caused a massive stampede. It was all Zack could do to hold on to the cow he happened to have climbed on, but even after they had long outrun the monster the cows continued to run, until it was all Zack could do to call out a warning to the villagers working in the rice fields before the crop was trampled. 

Zack looked at the floor and tried to appear small in the face of his father’s displeasure. “You had one job, Zack. Stay with your group. And somehow you ended up leading a stampede through a rice field, completely destroying the east bank. We’re less than two months from harvest. What are you going to do if we can’t repair the field?”

Zack trembled. Everyone in the village would be hungry, and it would be his fault. They were already running low on rice from the last harvest, after a mold had gotten into their stores and ruined almost half of what little they had. Everyone was on edge waiting for the new harvest, but with the water drained from the field, the crop would die quickly. 

That night Zack had refused dinner, determined that if the village was going to go hungry, he would be the first to starve. Curled up in misery on his small cot in the corner, trying to ignore the pangs of hunger stabbing through him, Zack listened to his parent’s conversation in the dark. 

“You’re being too hard on him,” his mother said softly. “He’s just a child. All the world is new and exciting to him right now, he wants to explore and discover. He’ll grow out of it.” 

“Will he grow out of it before he destroys the village?” Nottingham asked grumpily. “No, Mary, listen to me. Everywhere that boy goes, he brings disaster down on us. Ever since he learned to walk, it’s been one thing after another – fire, floods, stampede, famine.”

“Nott, it’s not Zack’s fault the last crop went bad. It’s no one’s fault. You can’t put that on his shoulders.” 

“That boy is a danger to himself and others. We can’t keep him underfoot here because he gets into too much mischief. We can’t send him off with the other children because at best, he’ll come home a frog, and at worst, he’ll nearly get himself – or worse, someone else – killed. He can’t help with the nets or the boats because he ‘gets distracted.’ Distracted! The boy lacks discipline. He’s too rambunctious to fish, too independent to work harvest or go foraging, and too scatterbrained to do anything else. We’ll be lucky if he lives long enough to get married, let alone finds a girl willing to put up with him for the rest of her life.”

Zack’s parents were quiet for a long time after that, and Zack put all his effort into being silent even as tears streamed down his face. He hated crying. He wasn’t a little kid, who cried just because he had a rough day. Someday, he would be good at something, and he would show everyone! 

“He’s only a little boy,” Mary said softly in the darkness. “I remember when you were that age. I thought you were the coolest thing on two feet, but my parents thought you were a little terror. You grew out of it, and Zack will, too.”

The next day, after Zack apologized for all of the trouble he caused the day before, Mary began teaching Zack the art of food. Zack was shy at first: the other ladies at the fire pit watched him make mistakes with amusement, and it seemed once again Zack couldn’t do anything right. Zack had never realized how much effort and precision went into his food, but the women spent most of the day around the fire. Nottingham hardly glanced at his son on his way out that morning, and while Zack hoped he would at least be proud to come home to a village largely the way he had left it, his father’s mood only seemed to darken through dinner. 

Although that was the beginning of the slew of emasculating comments and postures Zack would endure from his father on the unsuitability of his talents, Zack stuck with cooking. For one thing, it was challenging and interesting, enough to keep him focused. Zack’s attention never wandered while he worked at the fire pit, and he found that, although like any beginner he was prone to making mistakes, he _could_ learn and improve if he put his mind to it. 

His father was by no means the only adult to remark on Zack’s unusual pastime, and Zack endured the comments of nearly everyone in the village at some point or another. The men would come home from hunting or fishing and tell Zack he was getting prettier by the day, and ask him which of their sons he was going to grow up to marry, which earned snickers from the village girls and horrified looks from the boys. The women initially commented that it was silly for a boy to bother learning to cook when his mother and future wife would take care of it for him, but after a few weeks they gave up. Now they complained that they wished their own daughters would show such dedication to learning. If Zack hadn’t been outcast enough for being first a potentially dangerous playmate and then likened to a girl, this appreciation from their mothers was enough to earn Zack the murderous looks of the girls. 

Now, still a beginner but starting to carve out a place for his unique and delicious creations, Zack was becoming a town favorite. The older men loved coming home to see what Zack had come up with while they had been away, and the kids loved that Zack was always prepared to make a sweet dessert for them to share. As the village girls grew and began to spend more time studying cooking at their mothers’ elbows, they turned to Zack for help with difficult skills and complicated recipes. 

Although the women of the village tended not only the fire but also the fields, Zack never did manage to convince his elders he should be allowed back into the rice patties. Every time he visited, he trampled the crops, or pulled the rice and left the weeds, or did something else that caused trouble and invariably ended with him covered head to toe in mud. Instead, on days when the village turned out to harvest, Zack stayed with the children too young to help and the elders too old, and took care of them. He was a fountain of funny stories about his own adventures in the jungle – many of them wildly embellished for dramatic effect – and had endless energy and enthusiasm to spend with the younger children. 

Far from the town menace he had been, within a year of beginning to cook, Zack had become a popular and beloved feature around the village. Everywhere he went, he left smiles in his wake, and what he lacked in size he more than made up for in character. 

It was never enough. Nottingham remained stubbornly the one person who would always frown when he saw his son, making disparaging remarks and leaving his boy feeling like a bug on the bottom of his foot. Zack went to his mother in frustration, asking why his father thought so little of women and the work they did, and Mary tried to reassure him. “It’s not that the work is lesser, Zack,” she told him, “just different. Your father likes everything to be a certain way. He’s a very traditional man. He believes a man’s duty is to provide for his family by hunting, fighting monsters, and helping in the fields at harvest, and he wants to see you grow up well and become a man like he is.” 

Zack held back from mulishly declaring he never wanted to be a man if it meant becoming like his father. “But why can’t a man take care of the home and the children and the cooking while the woman goes out to hunt?” 

“It’s not traditional, honey, that’s all.”

“But where do the traditions come from?” 

Mary sighed. She wished Nottingham would get over his prejudice before he drove Zack away from them forever. She had seen the way her son’s eyes filled with sorrow and undeserved guilt every time her husband made a cruel remark, and she wanted nothing more than sooth away the hurt and make it all better. Frankly, she agreed with her son: in a village that shared everything, people should be allowed to do what they loved and were good at, and not feel guilty for doing it. 

Zack knew his mom was trying to help him with Nottingham. She shoved her son’s food at her husband every chance she got, often neglecting to mention where it came from until Nott admitted it was good, but every time he found out who the chef was he put on what Zack called his “stormy face.” He reminded them both that cooking was for women, and more importantly Zack would never find a nice girl to marry if he didn’t start developing skills that complimented, rather than overshadow, those of the village girls. Zack thought everything would be ok if he could just find a girl who liked to hunt and fish, but none of the girls seemed interested. 

The day a seven-year-old Zack passionately declared to his father that if he couldn’t find a girl who hunted to marry, he would wed a boy, Nottingham very nearly turned purple. Mary had simultaneously burst out laughing, and it was with a face red from embarrassment and fury that a tiny Zack stormed out of his hot Gongaga hut one night into the sweltering steam of the village. Tears burning in the corners of his eyes, Zack ran into the jungle, up the hills to a place he had visited time and time again in the past fifteen months since he transitioned from village terror to mini chef. It was a tree, old and smooth with low, wide branches that welcomed Zack’s climbing as if built just for him. Zack climbed as if he never meant to come back down. 

There was a slight rustle beneath him as a Touch Me hopped through the leaves. Zack watched it move and felt a strange slew of emotions. It had been a really long time since he had been a frog. Zack wondered if his mom really wouldn’t turn him back again if he touched the monster, and then wondered if he should do it anyway. He wouldn’t have to get married if he was a frog. 

“Zack, is that you?” a gentle tenor voice called, and a light flashed up at him. Zack made a face. He hadn’t wanted to be found so quickly. 

“Hey,” he said glumly, resigned to company. Balto wasn’t so bad. He was getting a little old to still be unmarried himself, but he was such a strong swordsman nobody really gave him any trouble. And he was nice to the younger kids, who idolized him in turn. Zack hadn’t seen much of him since he started cooking, but Balto was one person who never gave Zack any flack for doing something he enjoyed. 

“Can I come up?”

Zack shrugged, then realized it was getting dark and Balto might not have been able to see the gesture. “Yeah,” he said. Balto came up the tree easily, and sat a bit below him, looking out over the view. 

“Trouble at home?” the older boy asked after a moment. Zack was a little startled. People shared everything in Gongaga – food, affection, space, wealth and poverty. It was a little unusual to ask for something private, though. 

“It’s no big deal,” Zack said after a moment, resigned. “I don’t know what he expects me to do. I’m too young to get married, anyway.” 

Balto laughed a little. “You’re never too young to share your life with someone,” he said, and Zack flinched. It was an old proverb, one with too many layers of meaning. 

“You’re not married,” Zack accused after a moment. 

“I’m also not planning to stay in Gongaga for the rest of my life.” That got Zack’s attention. He stared at the older boy in shock. Leave Gongaga? How? And go where? The only thing out there was jungle. (Zack knew. You could walk forever and never leave the jungle.) “There are lots of things out there, Zack,” Balto gestured vaguely in front of him. “People to meet, monsters to save them from. Cities to see, big ones, not like Gongaga. Places where there’re just buildings and buildings as far as the eye can see. It’s different, not like here. It’s beautiful. I’m going to see it all.” 

“Good for you,” Zack said slowly. He wasn’t sure why Balto was telling him all of this. Balto had a sword, and a lot of skill. Zack only had skill as a cook, and he didn’t even own a knife. 

“Have you heard of ShinRa?” Balto asked.

Zack thought he vaguely recalled the name. People around town had mentioned it in connection with something called a mako reactor, not that Zack knew what that meant. All he knew was, when it came up in conversation, Nottingham got his “stormy face” and Zack kept his head down. “I guess?” 

“They’re a big company in a city called Midgar. Actually, the city was built around the company. They produce electrical power by pulling energy out of the earth in a big facility called a mako reactor. You know electricity? Like in my flashlight,” Balto offered. Zack made a noise of understanding. He didn’t have a flashlight, either, and used glowlights or candles if he needed light in the darkness. “They’re going to build a facility out here, so we’ll all have electricity. We can use it to keep our houses cool.” Balto trailed off and Zack contemplated what it would be like to have a cool house. He knew what cool felt like, of course, because he had been swimming. He didn’t know what cool would feel like dry, though. 

“If you want to get away from here, you should go work for ShinRa, Zack,” Balto said. “They can teach you all kinds of things. How to be a warrior, if that’s what you want. Or how to do something else, if fighting’s not your style. I hear they even have girls who fight.” Zack’s eyes widened at the idea. He could find a warrior woman to marry at ShinRa, and make his father proud of him. 

But that meant… “Do you…” Zack paused to figure out what he was thinking. “Do you think it’s ok for women to be warriors, then?” 

Balto laughed. “Why not? Women can do everything men can do, Zack. Don’t you think so?” 

“I think so,” Zack hurried to agree. “But then why don’t any of the girls around here want to be hunters?” 

In the growing gloom, Zack could sort of make out Balto’s profile as the older boy considered the question. “Probably because their dads tell them they can’t. My mom told me she used to love pole fishing in the river when she was a kid, but as she grew older her parents told her she had to give it up. She didn’t love it enough to fight them on it, so nothing changed. My older sister used to love fishing, too, and my mom didn’t think it was a problem, but my dad told her no. Now she’s married and renown for making the best salt-baked catfish in the village.” 

They sat together in silence for a time, each mulling over the implications in their own way. “Hey Balto? Can I ask you a grown-up question?”

“Sure, Zack.” 

“How come people in Gongaga get married?” 

“What do you mean, kiddo?” 

“We already share everything. So what’s the point of marrying? Isn’t it like saying ‘I’m gonna share with everybody but ESPECIALLY with this person!’?” 

“I think the idea is more that the person is what’s being shared. When you get married, it’s because you’ve found someone who appeals to you in a special way, and that person becomes so special you never want to give them up.”

Zack digested that idea slowly. He wasn’t sure he liked it. “If the person is so special, wouldn’t everyone want to marry them? In that case, wouldn’t it be better if there wasn’t marriage, so everyone could share that special person?” 

“Well, different people have different things they like. So I might see someone and think, gosh, that person is really something else. But you might look at that same person and think, yeah, that person is cool, but no MORE special that these other people. So maybe in that situation, I would want to marry the person, but you wouldn’t. And when two people feel the same way, and they both want to get married, then they do.” 

“I guess that makes sense,” Zack agreed, although it seemed like a flawed system to him. What if you never found someone who liked you the way you liked them? “But why is it so important to my dad that I get married? I think everyone is really special in their own way. It shouldn’t matter if one is especially different from another if I like them all, right? Dad wants me to grow up and be a man, but if that means I have to tell everyone I don’t like them as much as one other person, I don’t want to ever grow up!” Zack felt like a little kid throwing a tantrum, but this whole situation just seemed so ridiculous!

“Zack,” Balto said gently, trying to calm the younger boy, and waited until he heard a quiet grunt of acknowledgement. “Do you remember the legend of Lady Gaia?”

Zack sniffed. “Yes,” he muttered. “In the beginning, Lady Gaia lay nestled among Her friends and family, and She loved them all as they loved Her. She was happy with them and content, but She lived a dark, quiet, sheltered life that was unsatisfying,” Zack recited dutifully. 

“And then?” Balto prompted. 

“And then Lady Gaia met Lord Sol, and He lit Her life with such brilliance and beauty as She had never before known, and She was overjoyed with happiness and love for Him. But as time passed She grew dry and hot and tired, and She was sad, because even though She loved Lord Sol with all her might and knew that He loved Her, His brilliance was such that She could not see Her friends and family, and She missed them terribly.” 

“But Lord Sol truly loved Lady Gaia, didn’t He, Zack?”

“Yeah. He loved Her so much He turned away from Her, and in the darkness of His wake She could see Her friends and family again, and they were reunited and she felt joy. But Lord Sol would not give up Lady Gaia, so He came back, again and again, always retreating and returning so She could be shared among all those She loved and who loved Her.” 

“That’s right, Zack. And just like Lady Gaia, someday you’ll find that the life you thought was beautiful and fulfilling enough to sustain you was dim and bleak compared to the light and warmth of the person you love, and you’ll be ready to get married, too.” 

“It just doesn’t seem fair to the stars, to say they’re not enough,” Zack said quietly. He didn’t want to think the love of his friends and parents couldn’t sustain him forever. 

“A different tool for a different job, Zack. Life with Lord Sol is wonderful, enthusiastic and energetic and full of discovery and joy. But it’s exhausting, too, isn’t it? Your family and friends are the ones you can fall back on when you need some relief. And there’s no reason why you can’t have fun with them. It’s just a different kind of fun.” He paused there, but Zack thought there was something else he wanted to say, so he stayed quiet for a moment longer. “I hate to say it, but… you may understand better when you’re older.” 

Zack made a face in the dark at that, but Balto was probably right. The only way to explain to a tadpole what life was like breathing air instead of water was to let it grow into a frog and experience air for itself, and it would be the same for Zack, just like it was the same for Lady Gaia. 

“There are a lot more people in Midgar than there are here, you know. Maybe if you join up with ShinRa, you can find someone who can be your Lord Sol. Or maybe you’ll find out you’re the one who gets to be Lord Sol for somebody else.” 

It was certainly a tempting idea. But… if Zack left for Midgar, he would have to go very far away. He wouldn’t have to see his dad, but he wouldn’t be able to see his mom, either. He had friends in Gongaga. People he cared about… people he was sharing his life with. 

“Well, it’s up to you,” Balto said after a while. “You staying out here tonight, kid?” 

“I’ll come with you.” Zack had a lot to think about, but he didn’t need to leave his parents worrying while he did it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Neil Gaiman told me to laugh at my own jokes, so even though I know I’m not funny, I named Zack’s dad Nott Fair. Because it makes me laugh. Please excuse me, and, er, thank you for continuing to put up with me. Haha. 
> 
> I couldn’t come up with a good reason to have a socially contracted monogamous relationship so I made up that story about Lady Gaia. It’s not from anything that I know of except that it’s in the style of creation myths, so it’s probably very similar to a bunch of things. A lot of fanon seems to prefer an openness in the Gongagan sex life (which I approve of heartily) but canon has Zack’s parents concerned about him getting married. We’ll do some more exploration of Gongagan culture before this story is over and I’ll flesh out a little more of what I’m thinking, but for now just know I’m using the marriage issue (among other things) to create drama that pushes Zack to leave home as young as he does. 
> 
> The rest of my extensive notes for this chapter couldn't fit the 5000 character limit, but they're up at ff.net if you're that interested. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10321120/11/The-Hero-s-Guide-to-Heroism


	12. Pipedreams and Chocoboys

**Pipedreams and Chocoboys**  
Word Count: 596

“I’ve decided to quit SOLDIER,” Zack mumbled sleepily, his face pressed into Sephiroth’s bare shoulder. Half beneath him, Sephiroth tensed. Was Zack really leaving him? 

“I’m going to become a chocoboy,” Zack said. 

Sephiroth relaxed and let out a puff of laughter. “Not to stomp on your aspirations, but I would rather kill every chocobo in the world than let you leave SOLDIER to pursue this particular pipedream,” he said. 

“Nooooo,” Zack protested quietly, snuggling closer. Sephiroth clamped an arm tightly around his lover’s back. Even though he knew Zack was just experiencing one of his many post-coitus rambling episodes, Sephiroth was always a little on edge when he thought about losing the younger SOLDIER. “You promised I could keep Chocobro,” Zack whined. 

As always, Sephiroth flinched slightly at the moniker. “Only if you change his name,” he complained. 

Zack mumbled something that might have been a, “fine,” but could just as easily have been, “never.” It didn’t really matter. Sephiroth knew from experience that Zack would only remember this conversation as a vivid dream, which he would tell Sephiroth all about in the morning. This one would probably feature Zack in a rancher’s hat and neckerchief and nothing else, riding a bucking chocobo bareback, and then defending a flock of the beasts from a gruesome death by Sephiroth’s murderous sword. 

Zack seemed to drift off to true sleep after that, and Sephiroth settled down to follow suit. After a lifetime of constantly looking over his shoulder, even in places he was supposed to think of as safe, the relaxation he felt when he slept with a blissed-out Zack in his arms was unparalleled – and not something he was willing to give up. 

Besides, apparently the expression on his face on mornings after Zack spent the night was cute enough to endear Zack to the idea of going another round before breakfast, and if that wasn’t the best way to start a day off right, Sephiroth didn’t know what was. 

~-~-~

Sephiroth awoke to find his bed uncomfortably cold. Instantly alert, he realized Zack was gone, and sat up in a panic to find him. As it turned out, he didn’t even have to get out of bed. 

Zack sat in the armchair in the corner of the room, frowning at him, putting his lover very much on edge. Sephiroth waited tensely for what was to come, thoughts of a relaxing morning-after completely gone. 

Seeing that he was awake, Zack narrowed his eyes in anger. “I had a dream last night,” he began. Sephiroth opened his mouth to object – obviously he wasn’t _actually_ going to kill every chocobo in the world, and he was prepared to defend himself – but Zack held up a hand. “You told me that my aspirations, including my hope of someday becoming a Hero, were all pipedreams,” he said angrily. 

Sephiroth couldn’t stop the look of shock from playing out over his features. He _had_ said ‘this particular pipe-dream,’ implying Zack had others, but he hadn’t meant to suggest – 

Sephiroth realized Zack was laughing silently, and scowled. Grinning, Zack ran-jump-flopped back onto the bed, laying himself out along his lover’s body over the covers. Leaning in close to whisper in Sephiroth’s ear, he said, “I can think of a few ways you might make it up to me,” and then licked the shell of his lover’s ear. 

Sephiroth growled, grabbed him by the hips, and twisted the brunette under him. As it turned out, they didn’t end up making it to breakfast at all that morning. 

\---

**A/N:** So it looks like this fic is turning out to be pure crack, huh? Sorry I didn’t go into the smut… maybe later. 

I’ve hopefully mentioned this before, but the term Chocobro comes directly from the lovely FFlove190. *luffles*


	13. Squats for Luck

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, lengthy hiatus, sorry. I got a job, and it took me a while to realize I hate it... but now that I know I'll try to remind myself to inject things I like into my life, like writing! Hooray!

**Squats for Luck**  
Word Count: 1499

Angeal was never sure if he should worry about being late to these things. He and Genesis rotated on meet and greet duty (Sephiroth caused too much of a riot among the cadets when he attended – Director Deusericus had banned him after the fourth fainting) but mostly the event was for the cadets, and as such it was more important that the 3rds be in attendance. No matter how far a cadet was planning to climb through the ranks of SOLDIER, 3rd was the first stop for everyone. 

Still, it was a good opportunity for Angeal to check in with his own SOLDIERs, and he could get something of a sneak peek at the latest crop of cadets. He had heard mixed reviews of this lot, so it would be important background to see them out of the context of the SOLDIER program tonight. 

Speaking of, unless he was mistaken that was a cadet now. Angeal peered through the gloom to make the boy out a bit better. He was certain the cadet hadn’t seen him yet – in fact, the boy appeared quite focused on his… squats? Yes, the kid was doing squats. In formal attire. 

It wasn’t exactly _unheard_ of for a cadet to lose his shit this early in the training program ( _come on, it totally was_ ) but in Angeal’s memory the only trouble that ever occurred at the meet and greets was either Sephiroth- or alcohol-related, and the latter only applied to the established SOLDIERs. The President may have been piss-poor at reining in his own son, but the regulations on drug and alcohol use were pretty strict elsewhere in the company – especially among the cadets, who had to begin mako-compatibility screening that was strongly affected by the presence of such impurities. 

Sighing, Angeal approached with caution. There was no one else out here, after all, so either the kid was going through a break down and needed to be contained (even a cadet could make a PR nightmare, and Angeal had seen the stacks of paperwork on Sephiroth’s desk this morning – the man had no time to spare) or he was just freaking out and could use a shoulder (and if that was the case, Angeal would escort him to one of ShinRa’s trained professionals). 

“Hey there,” he called out. He was not expecting what happened next. 

~-~-~

Zack chugged the last of his fruit cider and left the used flute on one of the waiter’s trays. His grin and quick word of thanks went completely ignored, and he tried to remind himself that was just the way things were here. He had expected to encounter more rigid distinctions of superiority when he joined ShinRa’s private army, but he wasn’t sure how he felt about those distinctions applying outside of work, as well. (It was still polite to say thank you here, right?)

Admittedly, this was not exactly “outside” of work. Zack was at what was apparently a pretty standard fancy event called a “meet and greet” which appeared to basically be a banquet provided by ShinRa. Zack had been worried when he showed up and realized he hadn’t thought to bring a dish to an obviously food-related event, but apparently it wasn’t expected. 

Zack was getting stressed just thinking about it. Adjusting to the customs of Midgar was hard work. Everything he had heard from the construction workers on the reactor at home was true, but it didn’t even begin to cover the differences between Midgar and Gongaga. 

The air was ok above plate, but down in the slums it was thick and foul. Even above the plate, though, the weather was horrible. It was cold all the time, and Zack was in constant search of more blankets for his cot. (They were allowed two, but their drill sergeant had caught Zack awake after lights out, shivering too hard to sleep, too many times to begrudge him any extra, as long as they weren’t woven with what he called “obscene colors and patterns.”) The people were cold, too. It wasn’t so much that they were mean, exactly, but they just didn’t care. No one took any interest in anyone else, and that was really scary. 

Determined to enjoy his evening and stop the progression of dark thoughts running through his head, Zack decided to pop outside. He could do squats to stay warm, and the exercise-induced endorphins might improve his mood enough to brave the table full of Midgar-flavored delicacies. (Zack was _not_ going to think about how different everything tasted here or how nice it would be to settle his nerves over a hot bowl of _canh._ ) 

The event wasn’t being held in the main tower, but it wasn’t too far away. Pushing down the though of ditching early, Zack found a spot out of the way of the entrance and settled into his favorite squat routine. 

He had just begun working up a sweat when a low voice called a polite “Hey there” out of the darkness and nearly startled the pants off of him. Zack stumbled in his surprise and tripped on something behind him, ending up sprawled over one of the low shrubs that decorated the outside of the building. Sputtering to get errant leaves out of his mouth, he tried to focus through the gloom on what turned out to be a giant of a man with eyes that glowed mako-bright. 

_Shoot_ , Zack thought, _a SOLDIER_. No matter where he ranked on the totem pole of ShinRa importance, Zack was certain any SOLDIER was absolutely the _last_ person he wanted to be caught by, even on what was probably a very graceful sprawl through the bushes. 

“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you,” the guy said, holding his hands up non-threateningly. “Can I give you a hand up?” 

He seemed a little hesitant ( _well, duh_ , Zack scolded himself, _I wouldn’t want to get too close to a spaz who goes bush-diving for no reason either_ ) but when Zack stuttered out a modest “uh, yeah,” the man extended his arm as if nothing had happened. 

The man pulled him up as if he was light as a feather, and Zack was impressed again by the strength of SOLDIER. Not that he was a particularly hefty kid, and he was younger than most of the other cadets trying out with him, but Zack was sure a normal person would have had to extend at least a _little_ effort. 

“I thought the party was inside?” the SOLDIER asked, and Zack wasn’t sure if he sounded kind, nervous, or accusatory. People in Midgar showed him anything other than indifference so rarely, his people skills were really taking a nosedive. 

“Uh, yeah,” Zack said, trying desperately not to sound awkward and keenly aware that he failed miserably. He could hear his mother’s voice demanding “do you know any other words besides ‘uh’ and ‘yeah’?” in his head, and shifted uncomfortably. He was making a bad impression, and he knew it. 

“Come out to get some air?” That time Zack was sure it was kindness in the tall SOLDIER’s voice. 

_Do not answer ‘uh, yeah’!_ Zack’s mental voice shouted. He laughed nervously instead. “Ah ha… yes. I mean no. I mean… I thought I would do some, uh, some squats. They… help me stay calm?” he finished lamely. Keenly aware of his conversational deficiencies, Zack did another squat as if to demonstrate, and then unconsciously fell into his usual rhythm. 

The SOLDIER raised a dark eyebrow at him, and Zack focused on his form. He was good at squats. If he focused hard enough, maybe this horrible encounter would end. 

~-~-~

Angeal watched curiously as the cadet picked up speed. His form suffered for it, but not enormously, which was a fairly impressive feat. Squats were a good exercise when done correctly, but as with any repetitive motion, the risk of injury was always present. 

“Make sure you keep your core engaged when you do that.” Angeal wasn’t sure what possessed him to say anything; he should have just given up and left for the party, for which he was now _un_ fashionably late. But… he couldn’t just stand by and let the kid accidentally hurt himself in the first week. 

“Oh, uh, ye—I mean, uh, yes sir, thank you!” 

Ah… clearly the poor cadet was overwhelmed in the presence of a First, Angeal suddenly realized. He’d clear out, then. But first… “Carry on, then, Cadet…?”

“Oh, I’m Zack!”

Angeal tried not to let his eye twitch. Although a formal sir was not required in an off-duty interaction like this one, it was standard to provide a first AND last name. To his knowledge, only Sephiroth could get away without one. 

“Zack…?”

“Yup! Oh – sorry, yes, sir! Zack Fair, sir!” 

Angeal tried to keep his inevitable sigh inaudible. This cadet was a washout for sure – and the sooner ShinRa and the SOLDIER program could be rid of him, the better. 

“Well, enjoy the party, Cadet Fair. And… good luck with those squats.”


	14. Between Friends

**Between Friends**   
**Word Count: 752**

“So, what did you think?” 

Genesis looked up from his desk. Angeal was leaning against the door of his office, smirking down at him. “What did I think of what?” Genesis asked irritably. 

“Whom. Zack. Now that you’ve met him, what do you think?” 

Quite frankly, Genesis thought that if he saw the boy again, he might jump his bones, age regulation or none. Angeal probably didn’t want to hear that, though. Genesis let a small frown tug at his lips. “I try not to think much about him at all,” he said instead. Well, it was the truth. Or it had been for the past hour or so, since Genesis had come to the uncomfortable conclusion that his sexual attention had been captured by a fifteen year old nobody. 

Angeal rolled his eyes. “Look, Gen, I know I’ve been paying a lot of attention to Zack lately and you’re lonely.” Genesis glared at him. “But I think he has a lot of potential and there’s something about him that—” Angeal stopped short, and Genesis realized the look on his face had changed from glare to horror. 

Angeal stared back for a moment and then sighed. “The fact that you can even think I would be involved with Zack that way,” he began. 

“As long as you have me, you better not be thinking of _anyone_ that way,” Genesis jumped in, deflecting. 

It was Angeal’s turn to glare. Try as he might, there was nothing he could do to get Genesis to stop insinuating that the two of them were sleeping together – and his friend was obviously doing it just for him, since no one else was around to misunderstand. “Like I was _saying_ , there’s just something about Zack that seems to need protection. Something… I don’t want to say gentle, because I know he’s getting strong, and I don’t want to say childlike, because he’s practically an adult, but it’s like he’s innocent in a way no one else around here is. And I want him to stay that way.” 

_Innocent?_ That mocking tone, when the cadet had so cavalierly called him sir as though it didn’t matter one way or another – and then later, the way Fair had bucked and writhed against him on the mat – this was the boy Angeal thought of as innocent? 

“Sure,” Genesis said, playing along. “You just want to make sure you’ll be the last one to ever see that ‘innocence,’ right? Isn’t there a word for people like you...? Oh yeah. Cradle-robber.” He smiled sweetly. 

Angeal sputtered, glared, and then pushed off the wall. “One of these days, Genesis, you’ll learn to respect me AND Zack. It will probably be when you find out Zack is sleeping with someone you have no chance of competing with, and you have to come crying to me with your ‘what ifs’ and ‘could have beens.’ So quit your whining and buck up. Zack’s the best cadet you’ve ever seen and you know it.” With that parting shot, Angeal stormed out of the room. 

Genesis stared after him for a moment, surprised. He must have really hit a nerve if Angeal was complaining about his whining – that only happened when he was right, and Angeal had no other escape route. So that meant… Angeal really _did_ want Fair? 

Genesis shook his head. He liked to put on the appearance of being overwhelmingly romantic and poetic, even to the point of silliness, but he wasn’t an idiot, and he wasn’t blind. It wasn’t so much that Angeal couldn’t fall for someone like Zack, but… if he did, he wouldn’t hide it like this. Angeal was too honest, too honorable: if he had feelings for Zack (or anyone), he would make his feelings, and his intentions, known. 

Well, if Angeal was content to keep Fair as a student only – or, a student in need of special protection, or whatever – Genesis wouldn’t stop him. But Angeal had told him to meet his cadet, and Genesis had, and now the boy had his attention. And if he decided he did want to play… well, it was Angeal’s fault, right? After all, he had felt the spark of interest, and that wasn’t something that happened every day. 

Genesis settled back into his chair, the smile on his face that told those who knew him well to steer clear or risk being caught in the crossfire. Idly, Genesis wondered if Cadet Fair would be free for a wrestling match tomorrow morning, as well.


	15. Choco-Kiss

**Choco-Kiss**  
Word Count: 945

Zack let out the rein after crossing the finish line, giving Chocobro his head so they could take a cool-down walk. Zack leaned down to stroke the bird’s feathers gently, combing his fingers through them and fluffing them up a little. Chocobro had a specific destination in mind, and Zack let him guide them to the long, low tray of cool water a few of the other racers were wading into. Like other birds, chocobos couldn’t sweat, but the racetrack was set up to address their needs in advance. 

Zack dismounted before sending Chocobro off to cool down, and looked around. A number of other jockeys were standing around congratulating each other, and Zack would go over there in a minute to chat with them, but there was someone he wanted to see first. 

“That’s quite a bird you’ve got there,” a low voice commented behind him. 

Zack turned to see a dark-skinned brunette staring at him calmly. “Thanks,” Zack replied genially. “Not good enough to beat you, though.” Zack was more than a little put out. He and Chocobro had been racing a lot, and lately Chocobro had been winning fairly regularly. 

The first place jockey laughed. “Hyperion would never lose to a yellow,” he said lightly. “Frankly I’m surprised you managed to come in second. It’s not often you see a yellow chocobo make A-rank.” 

Zack wasn’t sure how to respond to that. He had been hearing other comments of a similar nature lately and wasn’t really sure what it was about. Why couldn’t a yellow chocobo win? And why was everyone so insistent that he breed Chocobro? People kept asking him – “Is Zack wild-caught? Or bred?” – that. 

Zack made a face. When he first started racing, he had been asked to fill out a bunch of entry forms, and under “name” had written his own. Now Chocobro was registered as Zack. Zack didn’t really mind: he had a good name, and he didn’t mind sharing it. It was a little annoying putting up with Genesis and Sephiroth’s teasing, renewed with each race, but overall Zack was kind of pleased with how everything worked out. Still, “I call him Chocobro when we’re not racing,” he corrected lightly. 

The jockey was right, Chocobro was an awesome bird, and while they could be one when they were racing, Zack felt Chocobro deserved the professional courtesy of having his own name. 

The jockey smiled pleasantly. “Yeah, Hyperion uses Teioh as his race name. Shame there’s such a strict character limit on race names, isn’t it?” 

It wouldn’t have made a difference in Zack’s case, but he nodded along anyway. “You’re, um,” he wracked his brains, thinking for sure he had seen this jockey around, “Joe?” 

Joe nodded. “And you are…”

“Zack.” Joe stared at him for a moment, recognizing the shared name, but Zack met his eyes shamelessly and in the end Joe decided not to comment. Instead, he abruptly burst out laughing. “What – what?!” Zack yelled. Seriously, was it THAT funny? 

“It’s nothing, it’s just – I’ve heard a lot about you, since you’ve been winning so much lately, and everything people say about you is so true, it’s just very surprising. In a good way,” he hurried to add. “So what about – Chocobro, did you say? Wild, I take it?” 

Zack shrugged and shook his head. “I don’t know anything about it, honestly. He was a gift from my boyfriend.” 

“How unusual. Most wild chocobos will only obey the person who caught them. But yellow chocobos that are bred in captivity are not usually considered suitable for racing.” 

Zack shrugged again. He didn’t know Chocobro’s origins, but he seemed fine at the races, so Zack had no grounds for complaint. “One way or another, we do alright,” he said cheerfully. 

Joe smiled. “Chocobro’s doing well enough for now, but if you want to keep winning your way up, you’ll need to leave your yellow in the stables. Why not breed a colored chocobo?”

Zack frowned, feeling a little miffed on Chocobro’s behalf. “It doesn’t matter if we can’t scale mountains or cross rivers. As long as he’s happy running, even if it’s just on the plains, how could I be disappointed?”

The jockey looked surprised. “If you were only riding outside, that would be fine, but these are professional races. If you’re going to join in as a jockey, don’t you think it’s your obligation to race the best bird you can? Around here, that means trading up from yellow. Your bird’s done well so far – why not breed him? You can still ride Chocobro when you want.”

Zack shrugged again, noncommittal. He raced because it was fun, and it was entertaining, and because Chocobro enjoyed it and was good at it – not because he needed to win. Turning his back on Joe, he scanned the room to check up on Chocobro. It had been long enough that he had probably cooled down some, but Zack was in no rush. Hyperion had wandered over to him, and was dragging his long pinfeathers behind him and spreading his tail feathers in a wide fan to show them off. “Kweh!” he squawked, rushing forward. 

Chocobro took a few quick steps in the opposite direction before turning back to observe, clucking in surprise. The display continued for several more minutes, Hyperion’s plumage fanning out more and more as he continued the ridiculous dance. Zack had no idea what he was doing, and Chocobro seemed both interested and highly offended by the display. 

Joe watched the display with an odd look on his face. “Zack,” he said finally, “you keep calling Chocobro ‘him,’ but… isn’t she a hen?” 

\---

A/N: Happy Birthday, Heroism! I’m not a huge fan of the execution of this chapter but I haven’t been able to improve it so… enjoy.


	16. The Love Guru

**The Love Guru**

Word Count: 1300

 

When a timid knock sounded against Tseng’s door, he frowned as he paused in his work.  He did his best to train his Turks to know he was there for them, their leader, their protector, their voice at ShinRa (especially with Veld constantly off doing who knew what).  He didn’t want them to be timid with him, but Elena… he hadn’t expected her to be so different from Emma.  He sighed and called her in. 

He was not expecting Zack Fair to cautiously open the door and poke his head into the office. “Uh, excuse me, sorry to interrupt… can I, um… come in?” the SOLDIER asked softly. 

“By all means,” Tseng said, voice slow and modulated as ever but adding in a sweeping gesture with one hand to indicate Zack should come in at once.  He had no idea why Fair could need to see him, and was aware that the boy’s mentor, Angeal, had made it very clear the Turks were not to approach his student, so the boy’s presence here now was quite the curiosity.

“I, uh… I don’t really know why I came here…” Zack trailed off, melancholy exuding from every inch of him. He was not at all what Tseng had expected: his intel reported Zack as a vivacious, exuberant young man who was always confident in himself (although willing enough to learn and improve, so not arrogant in his confidence) and, most of all, always moving. Zack was supposed to be a fidgeter, but the boy sitting across from Tseng now was so still and slumped in his posture, if Tseng hadn’t been able to make out the rise and fall of his breathing he may have thought the boy was dead. 

On top of that, to start out a meeting with such an obvious falsehood was another big red flag. Zack clearly had a purpose in coming, or else he wouldn’t be disobeying three SOLDIER Firsts to drop by.

“Something’s clearly wrong,” Tseng said in his usual monotone.  “If you came here to tell me what it is, tell me.  Otherwise I’ll call Angeal for you.”

_That_ earned a reaction.  A look of horror washed over Zack, and he tensed, even straightening out of his slumped posture.  “Please don’t,” he said firmly.  “I – excuse me, I – I’m Zack Fair.  You’re Tseng, right?  I came to the right office?”

Tseng inclined his head slightly by way of answer.  This was… again, not what he had expected. 

“Uh… Reno told me I should talk to you,” Zack said quickly, as if he needed to share the information but would rather no one heard. 

Tseng’s eyes flashed. Reno?  When had they met?  Reno knew as well as everyone in Turk that Zack Fair was absolutely off-limits. But Reno was always the type to push boundaries… Tseng probably should have seen this coming. But why send Zack here?

“Yes?” Tseng inquired politely, when it had been a minute and nothing else seemed forthcoming.

Zack appeared to be struggling to find the right words.  “I’m dating… someone,” he said at last.  Tseng tried not to show how flabbergasted he was.  Relationship advice? For someone dating Sephiroth? Tseng was sure he wouldn’t have even the slightest idea where to begin.  But as if a dam had been broken, Zack was already going on, like he couldn’t stop now that he’d begun.  “He’s very… closed-off.  I mean, I know he… cares for me, that’s never a problem.  And I understand that my natural, uh… friendliness is a little overwhelming to a lot of people, especially in… public? He’s also in a different position than me, you know… more people are watching him, so he has to really watch his behavior.  But I just… this is who I am, you know?  I can’t be… like him.  And I guess I’m just worried… that it will turn out to be too much.  That _I_ ’ll be too much. I don’t want to lose him,” Zack said that last so miserably, as if he didn’t want to but couldn’t see any other possible outcome.  He curled in on himself in his chair, looking not at all like a powerful SOLDIER and very much like an insecure eighteen year old. 

“Just to be clear, why ask me about it?” Nothing about what Zack had just said was clear, but this seemed to be the most important point to address for now.  Surely the boy had real friends he could turn to for advice.

Zack looked up, clearly startled.  “Reno said you and… my boyfriend are kind of alike.  You’re both leaders and kind of… aloof.  He said you might have some insight into… my boyfriend’s position.”

Aloof?  Hm.  Tseng clearly had some work to do with his Turks, to make himself more approachable.  But in the meantime… yes, when Zack put it that way, he could see some resemblances between himself and Sephiroth, in position and personality if not in history.

“And why aren’t you talking to… your boyfriend about it?”  Zack had been careful not to say Sephiroth’s name, and Tseng could respect that.

“I’m _trying_ ,” Zack sighed.  “He doesn’t understand my position at all.  It’s all protocol and maintaining appearances with him, and I get that it’s important for him to keep up his reputation and everything, but…” Zack paused, again apparently struggling to find the right phrasing. “I’ve spent a lot of time in close relationships with people who have a lot riding on their reputation, and they’ve never let it get in the way of me being… me.  So I just have to wonder if maybe S… my boyfriend doesn’t really want me after all?” 

Tseng felt his heart go out to Zack – and to Sephiroth.  What a difficult position, to be blessed with such an affectionate lover and not know at all how to respond to him.  Sephiroth hardly had experience with platonic affection, let alone romantic… it was no wonder he was struggling to reciprocate Zack’s feelings. Well, one problem at a time. 

“I’m sure your boyfriend cares about you very much,” Tseng said, trying to be reassuring and aware that his tone sounded completely uncaring, “he probably just doesn’t know how to express himself.”

“I’ve been _showing_ him how,” Zack complained.  “But he acts like I’m a little kid.”

“Perhaps you could try telling him?” Zack stared at him in confusion, so Tseng pressed on. “It may be that he has been told behaving as you do is… inappropriate.  When you behave that way, rather than seeing it as an invitation, he may just see it as being disrespectful.  You must _tell_ him it is not, and invite him to participate with you – or else he is left with no recourse but to judge you silently against the standard he has been given.”

Zack hummed quietly. “Is this one of those learning methods things?  Angeal was telling me about them,” he elaborated.  “He said some people learn by reading, others by writing… some by hearing things, others by practicing them.  Some people need a mix of methods to learn.  Is this like that?  I learn by doing, but, S… my boyfriend learns by talking?”

“You might as well try and see.  At worst, he continues to misunderstand and nothing changes, right?” 

Zack was nodding slowly. “Yeah…” he said, “yeah. That’s a good point. I’ll talk to him about it, then. Um… thank you.”

“Then, if there’s nothing else, I have a meeting to get to…” Tseng said.  He was already ten minutes late, but who knew when he might need a favor from Zack Fair.  It was better to help out in situations like this. 

“Oh, of course, you’re busy! I’ll get out of your hair. Um, really, thank you.”

“Not at all. Drop by any time, Zack.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mentioned Zack being 18 at some point in this chapter. I'm kind of guessing, because while I originally intended this fic to be canon compliant, that's all kind of flown out the window, and furthermore I don't have any linear notes for this story. I haven't been able to find a timeline software that is functional for my needs (both a lot of events happening in a short period of time and a lot of events happening over years) and convenient to look at. So if I end up with incongruencies later, just let me know?


	17. Hook, Line, and Sinker

**Hook, Line, and Sinker**

Word Count: 1182

 

The mission had been boring, far below Sephiroth’s capabilities, but the long helicopter ride back promised to be relaxing, at least.He probably wouldn’t be able to sleep the entire way home, but he could at least arrive refreshed, energetic, and smelly, instead of grumpy, tired, and smelly.(The smell was a given, as he hadn’t had time to change after trudging through the swamps.)

Tseng had sent a young, flashy Turk named Reno to pilot the chopper for him.Reno came with high accolades on his piloting skills, not that it meant much coming from Tseng: Sephiroth had yet to find a vehicle that traversed land, sea, or air that Tseng couldn’t somehow manage to crash.Still, for all the boy’s obvious exuberance at being in the air, Reno seemed solid enough in his skills. 

Sephiroth settled in for a long, quiet, smooth flight. 

“So, I hear you’re fucking Zack Fair lately,” Reno’s voice crackled through the headset. 

Sephiroth was more surprised to be addressed at all than he was shocked by the vulgarity or the blatant prying into his personal life.The Turks were always the first to know about developments there; sometimes they even knew before Sephiroth did, himself. And Reno didn’t report to him, so there was no reason for him to address Sephiroth like a senior officer (even if technically speaking being a SOLDIER 1st outclassed Reno’s rank in Turk).Sephiroth even preferred to be addressed as an equal, and counted on the Turks especially to do so, since they of all people knew better than to put him on some kind of pedestal. 

Still, Sephiroth wasn’t entirely sure what to say to such a blatant probe.A number of potential responses came to mind, but all were either untrue, unreasonably harsh, or statements of irrelevance, all things Sephiroth tried to avoid.So he just said, “Yes,” and lapsed back into silence. 

“Why?” Reno asked, interrupting Sephiroth’s peace once again. 

…What?What the hell did that mean?Why what?Why was he fucking Zack?Why were they together at all? Why had Sephiroth chosen Zack, of all people, or –

“Why does Zack always end up with you freako SOLDIER types, yo?Angeal, Genesis, now you… maybe when he’s finished he’ll finally get a clue and settle down with someone who actually appreciates him,” Reno commented blithely.

No.No way.Turks were many things, but blithe was not one of them (that face was merely a façade, always, commonly employed to distract an enemy from a weakness but never more than that, never a truly accurate description of a Turk’s feelings).Reno could act nonchalant for as long as he liked, Sephiroth was smarter than that, and onto him.This disheveled flyboy was trolling for information.Well, two could play at that game. 

“Someone like you?” Sephiroth asked calmly.He even closed his eyes as if the conversation were truly so boring he might go to sleep after all. 

Reno scoffed. “You kiddin’? Zack’s cute an’ all but he’d never be able to keep up with me.He seems to like serious types, though… and I know Tseng’s fond of him.Calls him Puppy and everything.” 

Sephiroth boiled with rage.Puppy!That was a SOLDIER nickname, born of Angeal – or Genesis, Sephiroth had never really been able to figure that one out – and intended exclusively for use by SOLDIER, by people who knew Zack and what it meant to be in Zack’s position and saw his attitude and appreciated it properly!(Sephiroth conveniently ignored the fact that he never used the nickname, himself.)No Turk could understand how amazing it was that Zack could simply _be_ Zack, the puppy – and how dare they try!

And Tseng!He was – well, he wasn’t a friend, because you couldn’t trust Turks and you had to trust someone to call them your friend, but he was an ally at least.Tseng was… not a terrible guy. 

Sephiroth suddenly turned to a different line of thought.It was possible that he was absolutely right about Tseng and that Reno was just playing him.People had tried baiting him before, to test his control, to feel more powerful in themselves, even just for the thrill of it.Surely Reno wasn’t stupid enough to try to force Sephiroth to attack him… after all, if the helicopter crashed, only Reno would die. 

But if he wasn’t that stupid, it meant the redhead must be playing a different angle.What could he hope to gain by saying… by saying… just what was he saying, anyway?That Tseng had designs on Sephiroth’s boyfriend?No, that was an assumption, and Sephiroth tried not to make assumptions.Better to wait for the facts.All Reno had said was that Tseng liked Zack, but that was nothing out of the ordinary at all: everyone who met Zack liked him.Reno had _implied_ Tseng would be a better match for Zack than Sephiroth, but he never said Tseng _wanted_ Zack, had any interest in him at all, or was even aware of Reno’s efforts on his behalf. 

And there was another assumption.These efforts might not be on Tseng’s behalf at all.Certainly all the Turks had a degree of loyalty to each other, and that loyalty was always stronger along vertical lines, because your peers surrounded you but it was your leader who protected and guided you, and for your leader who you would sacrifice everything.(Veld was technically still in charge of the Turk department but he had been somewhat incommunicado lately and Tseng was basically filling in for him in the meantime.)But was loyalty, mere affection, enough to send Reno out to steal Sephiroth’s boyfriend for his boss?Surely not. 

Surely not, unless… unless Reno was doing this not just for Tseng, but for Zack, as well.Sephiroth wasn’t even sure the two had met, but if they had, certainly Reno would feel the same universal affection towards Zack and interest in his wellbeing everyone felt.Did Reno have reason to believe Tseng truly would be a better match for Zack than Sephiroth?Should _Sephiroth_ think Tseng was a better match?Zack would tell him, surely, if there was something he wasn’t doing right, something more he should be doing to support Zack… but what if it was something Zack thought he couldn’t do?Something about his personality, for instance, an issue that Tseng didn’t have?But Tseng was even more cold and calculating than Sephiroth, it couldn’t be that – unless –

Sephiroth let his thoughts wander over the possibilities Reno had so suddenly uncovered for Zack’s romantic future, completely unaware of the amused smile the pilot was cleverly hiding.Even when they landed in Midgar five hours later, Sephiroth hadn’t completely finished wrapping his mind around Zack and Tseng being a better couple than he and Zack already were, but he was cut off before the propellers had stopped spinning by a sudden lapful of Zack, exuberantly welcoming him home. 

As long as Zack was happy with him, maybe Tseng wasn’t a better match for him after all. 

 


	18. Stealth Training: Kunsel Edition

**Stealth Training: Kunsel Edition**  
Word Count: 698

“Shhhh! Stop giggling, hand it over! Put that – no, over there!” 

“Ok, ok. Wait, what do I do with this thingy again?” 

“It goes with that other – never mind, just give it to me.”

In the dark and unfamiliar supply closet, Zack managed to knock something over with his elbow as he groped in his best friend’s direction to hand over the missing piece. Whatever he’d hit fell to the floor and shattered with an incredibly loud noise. In the deafening silence that followed, both boys held their breath, hoping against hope no one had heard them, or worse, would come looking… until Zack lost it and burst out laughing. 

“Zack! Shut up!” Kunsel begged, but his heart wasn’t in it. Zack was a terrible prankster, this always happened. “Look, that’s it, it’s all set, now let’s get out of here!”

“Aye aye, Commander Kunsel, SIR!” Zack whispered back, still chuckling. “Need a boost?” 

They had made use of the absurdly large vents to navigate the ShinRa building without attracting attention, and had snuck into an under-used space on the Urban Development floor. Kunsel had somehow managed to get access to the code that programmed ShinRa’s defensive bots, and Zack had appropriated as many as he could get his hands on over the past few days. With Kunsel’s “updated” code written over their chips, all the duo had to do was plant them and wait. If Kunsel had done his part, and Zack hadn’t damaged them during transport, they would activate the next time the door was opened, and unleash chaos throughout the whole department. 

They would be caught, of course. They always were, and getting away with it was never the point, anyway – not really. Angeal especially had recently started blaming every mishap in the tower on the two of them, whether they were responsible or not (usually the case was more ‘whether there was evidence to prove they were responsible or not,’ because Kunsel tried his best not to incriminate himself as a matter of course). This tended to work out in their favor, however, since Angeal would never give up on Zack and therefore was generally willing to protect him, and by extension his partner in crime, from the worst repercussions. Besides, Zack had to learn stealth somehow – it might as well be from sneaking around the building, causing trouble, right? 

But the true point of pranking was mischief-causing, and this prank would fulfill that end quite well. Kunsel accepted Zack’s boost to get back up into the vent, and turned back to offer his friend a hand. A clean getaway was key – especially because, if they were caught in this closet, someone would know they were up to no good. Urban Development was underfunded and understaffed, but everyone who worked there was a passionate nerd, and any one of them would be able to fix Kunsel’s modifications. That would be no fun at all. 

Kunsel tried to be quiet as they crawled swiftly away from the crime scene, but Zack was a mess of poorly-stifled giggles. Kunsel knew reprimanding him would be completely useless, so he didn’t bother; in the end, it didn’t matter one way or the other, because they made it out with no one the wiser. Zack and Kunsel shared a quick high-five and then made their way to the cafeteria together, Kunsel’s arm slung casually over Zack’s shoulder and a huge grin plastered over Zack’s face. It did no good to try not to look thick as thieves, because for one thing everyone knew they were anyway and for another, trying to look innocent would just tip everyone off that they were guilty. 

“Angeal’s gonna be so mad,” Zack said, sounding absolutely delighted by the prospect. 

“Yeah,” Kunsel agreed, beginning to feel a little giddy with success, himself, “he’s gonna kill us for sure when he finds out.” 

The boys tried to share a look of fear or at least trepidation over the sorry fate the future had in store for them, but it was impossible to be concerned about consequences in a moment like this, so they quickly gave up. After all, life was too short to be serious.


End file.
